Few escaped the hardship that came with the Rand Water shutdown

Eeufees Oord residents struggle to maintain themselves with filthy water from JoJo tanks and small businesses buckle as they are unable to service customers.

July 25, 2023

Emily Wellman Bain 2 minutes read

Tiwa Srri, Zanele Rivombo and Kyler Fafta at the doorway of Srri's beauty salon which can hardly open with the Rand Water maintenance water shutdown. Photo: Emily Wellman Bain.

The elderly and vulnerable were left to fend for themselves during the Rand Water outage at the Eeufees Oord retirement village in Westdene as no water tanker was available. Being a state-run facility, residents do not have the means to subsidise purchasing bottled water, so have been using the filthy water from two JoJo tanks on-site.

Aubrey Crowder demonstrates how to use the JoJo tank at Eeufees Oord. Photo: Emily Wellman Bain.

“It is brown and not suitable for drinking, but at least I can flush my toilet and try to keep clean. My daughter has brought us a little water for drinking and cooking with,” said 68-year-old resident Pat van Vyk. She, like others, are deeply unsettled by the conditions they are enduring.

Pat van Vyk (68) says the water in the JoJo tanks at Eeufees Oord is not safe for drinking and feels abandoned by the city as no tankers have been made available for them. Photo: Emily Wellman Bain.

Koos Pieterson (86) is sprightly but not physically strong. “Apart from not having a working geyser for weeks, leaving me unable to have a warm wash when it is cold, I don’t even have cold water in the taps now because of this outage. I am not okay; I am not all right.”

Jan Vissagie (68) is wheelchair-bound and distressed that he is unable to assist his elderly wife to carry water to their small unit. “Someone is helping us with drinking water but the rest we need to do ourselves. We have been totally abandoned by the city with no water tankers nearby, it is terrible.”

Koos Pieterson (86) and Frank Esterhuizen (74) in the communal gardens at Eeufees Oord. Photo: Emily Wellman Bain.

It is unclear why Eeufees Oord was not provisioned for like other retirement villages or old age homes.

This journalist drove around the suburb to spots like the nearby Westdene Recreation Centre to try and locate a water tanker but was unable to. It was listed as a venue for alternative water supply but passers-by said the tanker never arrived.

Jan Visagie (68) is unable to help his wife carry water to their unit which he finds distressing. Photo: Emily Wellman Bain.

Tiwa Srri owns the Ever Ready Beauty Salon in Sophiatown. “Shew, this week has been terrible. On Monday clients stayed at home because of the snow, and they never returned because there has been no water since Tuesday. Even in a normal week it is tough times for my small business because of load-shedding, we are pushed to our limits.”

A beauty salon's hair washing station sits empty during the Rand Water maintenance shutdown in Sophiatown. Photo: Emily Wellman Bain. — A beauty salon’s hair washing station sits empty during the Rand Water maintenance shutdown in Sophiatown. Photo: Emily Wellman Bain.

The hairstylists have all come to work, but there is not much they can do to earn a few rand by servicing their clientele. “How can we operate without water; how do we flush the toilets and keep the shop clean without water?”

Koos Pieterson (86) is used to water problems at Eeufees Oord but says the recent outage has pushed him to his limits. Photo: Emily Wellman Bain.

Luckily, they at least have access to a nearby swimming pool for water to wash the floors and keep bathrooms sanitary, but it is far from ideal as they walk with containers to-and-fro several times during the day.

Aubrey Crowder, a resident at Eeufees Oord Retirement Village, is frustrated by the lack of municipal support for the elderly during the Rand Water maintenance shutdown. Photo: Emily Wellman Bain.

A beggar stopped by the entrance to the store as this journalist was leaving. He was not looking for change or food, but rather a sip of water to drink. Srri did not hesitate to give him a small bottle of water she had in the shop.