Piped water for North Coast residents in the Siza Water consession area, from Zimbali to Tinley Manor, will continue to be sporadic for some time.
Siza Water group managing director Shyam Misra said they could not yet say when water supply would return to normal.
Should there be water in the taps, it will only be for two to three hours at a time depending on available water levels.
While Umgeni Water is trying to reinstate full operations at the Hazelmere water treatment works to produce safe water supply, Misra said they had agreed to lower the turbidity limit and to increase chlorine application.
This may lead to discoloured water in some areas such as Zimbali, Ballito, Salt Rock, Chakas Rock, Sheffield and Shaka’s Head.
Siza Water says the water is safe to drink, but consumers may at their own discretion, first boil the water as an additional precaution.
Siza Water is the water service provider to the Ilembe District Municipality and serves the former Dolphin Coast Municipal service area that is now part of KwaDukuza Municipality
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Residents in this zone have been without water since Sunday, April 10.
“Umgeni Water is helping by supplying water from the Uthukela water works. Our teams are currently working on repairing the water network damaged by the floods,” Misra said.
“Repairs are being undertaken under dangerous conditions, but teams have made progress and supplied water to a vast area in Etete via the water network on Saturday afternoon. Some parts still require water tankers, however.
“Infrastructure over the bridges and close to rivers have been damaged and we are are working on temporary solutions. However, the timeframes for these are unknown at this stage. Power problems were experienced, as well as cable theft. There was also possible damage to the supply pipeline from Honolulu to the Etete reservoir.
Shakaskraal, Shayamoya and Nkobongo residents have also been without water since last Sunday. These townships are fed off the supply line from the Hazelmere treatment works, but Siza Water is liaising with Umgeni Water to supply them from the Lower Thukela system.
“Supply lines to these reservoirs in the vicinity of Shakaskraal have been severely damaged or washed away, and our engineering team is liaising with contractors to reinstate the respective pipelines,” said Misra.
“Since Saturday, a contractor has been clearing the debris to conduct inspections. Until the supply lines are replaced or reconfigured, we will have to rely on tankers to provide water in these areas.”
Sewer networks in Shakaskraal have also been extensively damaged by storm water, including the Shakaskraal waste water treatment works, Lali Park and Shakaskraal sewer pump stations.
Misra said they will begin with rehabilitation of these pump stations and the treatment plant this week.
Tinley Manor had been out of water since last week Tuesday owing to the pipeline crossing the river supplying the reservoir being washed away.
Tinley Manor is reliant on the Hazelmere system to supply water.
“Our engineering team is liaising with contractors to reinstate the supply line across the lagoon as this has been severely damaged by the flooding.
“Work can only commence on this once the river level subsides, rendering it safe for the teams to work in the area. The roads have only been temporarily repaired for us to commence tanker water deliveries last Thursday.”
“Since Saturday afternoon they began supplying Tinley Manor, and they are still augmenting water into the reservoir via tankers so that residents receive water in their homes.
“Should the reservoir levels drop, they will revert to intermittent supply. We ask that Tinley Manor residents use water sparingly as water in homes is an absolute luxury at present.”
Sheffield and Salt Rock have had damage to water and sewer networks. These areas should have had water supply return last Wednesday morning, but, some parts would have received water only on Saturday. These areas are supplied by the Hazelmere system.
“The secondary reservoirs are currently running extremely low or have already been emptied, hence supply has only been reinstated to areas where the reservoir had water,” said Misra.
“Many of the water network repairs are temporary, especially in areas where we have had to suspend pipes using poles and sandbags owing to washouts of the soil under the infrastructure.”
Ballito and Zimbali have had intermittent supply since last Wednesday. These areas are also dependent on the the Hazelmere system.
“Some areas may receive some water if the Avondale level picks up and we open the gravity feed.
“Certain parts of Ballito Business Park have been serviced by our water recycling plant on Saturday, but the upper business park area (especially the Odyssey, Lifestyle and Junction Malls) have not had conventional water supply. We have filled the tanks at these respective malls and hospitals so they could at least run their ablutions.”
Chakas Rock, Shaka’s Head, part of Simbithi and areas around Umhlali Country Club have been without water since last Wednesday and are also dependent on the Hazelmere system. Water tankers are currently supplying these areas.
“The Shaka’s Head sewer pump station is not functioning and we will conduct a detailed analysis on the situation once we can access it, hopefully within the next few days,” Misra said.
Siza Water has more than 25 water tankers servicing various points throughout their service area. Local ward councillors are best placed to advise the community where these tankers are deployed. Misra said they are working closely with councillors during the crisis.
“We are utilising some tankers to top up some reservoirs so we can open them intermittently, but not all reservoirs are accessible.”
He requested patience and understanding while they tried to manage the situation in difficult circumstances.
This article first appeared on Caxton publication North Coast Courier, by Sboniso Dlamini. Read the original article here.
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