Concern flows over ongoing Durban North water leak
Grant Westbrook is concerned about the amount of water being wasted as a leak flows for weeks on end.
DURBAN North resident, Grant Westbrook said a water leak outside his home on Adalaide Tambo Road has been ongoing since 24 July.
What’s more, he has spotted two other leaks along the road which sprung up after a major repair job recently which left the local water reservoir temporarily empty. Westbrook said he attempted to report the leak twice.
“After waiting so long on the phone, I got cut off before I could get a reference number,” he said.
While Westbrook is concerned about the amount of water being wasted, he said the ongoing leak raises concerns about service delivery.
Also read: Water restored in north Durban after massive repair job
“Where is the municipality? There hasn’t been any sign of anyone doing anything. For three leaks to be on the same stretch of road between Broadway Road and Old Mill way, you would have expected to see someone doing something,” he said.
Westbrook said he was recently saddled with a large bill for a leak in his property.
“I had a water leak under my property during the lockdown period and immediately, after detecting the leak, I took it upon myself to lift the paving and fix it myself because of my concern of water loss. I’ve got a R30 000 water bill from that leak. When I see the leak outside my home on the road, I wonder who is accountable for it,” he said.
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The leak has affected water pressure on his property, he added. Acting ward councillor, Shontel de Boer said she has logged a complaint about a leak on Adalaide Tambo Road six times.
“This leak is one of the first leaks I reported. It has been over a month now that the water has been leaking and still, nothing has been done,” she said. The eThekwini Municipality did not send their comment at the time this article was published.
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