Elderly at Eeufees Oord beg for help as the village deteriorates and units remain empty

Empty units pose a security risk and are inexcusable considering the levels of poverty in the elderly population who could benefit from their shelter.

February 10, 2023

Emily Wellman Bain 1 minute read

Aubrey Crowder, a resident at Eeufees Oord at an overflowing sewerage manhole that took weeks to fix.

Eeufees Oord retirement village in Westdene has been plagued by maladministration and a lackadaisical management stream for years.

Finally, though, it seems there may be some relief for residents in the government-run facility.

A double unit stands empty despite many elderly needing a safe place to live who can’t afford expensive facilities.

Patrick Phophi, executive director for the Department of Human Settlements said, “The department is still busy with the procurement of a service provider to undertake the works, improvement and upgrades, and is anticipating to have them on-site as of mid-February 2023.”

Resident Aubrey Crowder claimed the property was crumbling and living there had become almost intolerable.

A mountain of rubbish has become a health hazard and an eyesore for residents and visitors because the management team do not clear it after telling residents to use the space for items that do not go in the municipal Pikitup bins.

“Security remains a problem as guards are not always on duty and lighting at night remains inadequate. This has resulted in people accessing the grounds and at times breaking into some of the numerous empty units which have been uninhabited for years. It is a travesty because there are so many vulnerable elderly who desperately need somewhere to live,” he said.

Leaking plumbing plagues several units, leading to unnecessary damage to infrastructure.

In a water-scarce country, a burst pipe has been gushing water for several weeks according to Crowder which had resulted in a resident’s unit suffering damages due to flooding. They have now lodged a call with Johannesburg Water themselves, as the village’s maintenance team seems unable or unwilling to attend to the problem.

A unit stands empty despite many elderly needing a safe place to live who can’t afford expensive facilities.

He also bemoaned the informal dump that had been established near the hall which was not only an eyesore but was becoming a health hazard too. “We were told to use the space to dump rubbish that can’t be collected in our refuse bins but it is not cleared and has become a nightmare. We have tried to raise funds ourselves to pay someone to clear the space but none of us has easy access to funds. We managed to raise R500 between us but that is not nearly enough to make even a small dent.”

The Nortcliff Melville Times will continue to monitor the situation and provide feedback in the coming weeks.

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