Homeless crew work hard to prevent Centurion river flooding

Despite two weeks of near constant rainfall in Gauteng, the notorious flooding spots in Centurion, Pretoria, have had no major incidents reported and it appears that residents have a group of homeless people in the area to thank for this.

The Hennops River which starts in Kempton Park, usually see its 100km stretch heavily swamped with large quantities of plastic, polystyrene, sewage and heaps of foam. Organisations, individuals, and the City of Tshwane have had to regularly clean out the river, which used to see large quantities of waste being cleared on a weekly basis.

The decaying waste turns into microplastics while the polystyrene releases agents which can cause birth defects and developmental disorders. It also often led to blockages which resulted in flooding and the overflowing of the river.

Also Read:11 tonnes of waste removed from Hennops River 

This was until a group of men who had been living alongside the river decided to form a team which regularly cleans out tons of litter and pollution found in the river, meaning fewer blockages, and subsequently less flooding.

The men live under a bridge, not far from one of the most notorious bottlenecks, where the pollutants usually pile up, the group of eight men have joined the efforts of non-profit organisation Hennops Revival, and can be found putting in the work.

Sibusiso Masango has been living near the river for the past four years after leaving KwaNdebele to look for work. He said he approached founder of Hennops Revival, Tarryn Johnston when he noticed her cleaning the river early last year.

“I went to her to ask for work. She said I can work with them to clean out the river. Ever since living here, this river has never been in good condition,” he said.

This happened shortly before the controversial dumping of latex gloves and surgical masks last year during a period when the personal protective equipment was in short supply, and since then the work has barely stopped.

The group’s team leader Johannes Dube has great knowledge of the river, having lived by the banks for several years before the NGO moved him to a homeless shelter.

Speaking beside a large waste pile, collected from one of the poly-island nets which were installed to catch waste, and have been working overtime after the recent rains, Dube spoke passionately about their efforts.

“I know my work very well and I help where I can because I love it. I am the team leader because I am willing to do anything and whatever they struggle with, including planning.”

Spending a lot of time around the river, Dube and Johnston say they have seen a decline in flooding in the area.

“I am around here all the time and I see what happens. The floods have reduced a lot.”

This was due to the reduction of storm water drainage blockages, Johnston said.

“With us being so active, because there has been less blockages, there has been less flooding. These guys are with us and doing the labour and they are helping reduce the flooding,” she said.

Tshwane emergency services spokesperson Charles Mabaso confirmed that there were high volumes of water and localised flooding in Centurion in the recent weeks, but “actually not as bad as it usually is”.

“There was no major flooding. It might be due to the amount of rain that we have received and also due to areas where storm water drainages were cleared,” said Mabaso.

• rorisangk@citizen.co.za

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