The recent heavy rains have, according to uThukela District Municipality, compounded the problem of raw sewage flowing into the Bushman’s River.
For more than three years, residents living around the Bushman’s River in the area known as Paradise (which is at the back of Alfred Street) have watched sewage pouring out of a damaged pipe over the river.
Realising the imminent danger of disease that people living along the river may face, residents reported the leak, but no repairs were carried out.
More recently, the heavy rains worsened the situation, as uThukela District Municipality communications manager Jabulani Mkhonza explains…
“The recent flash floods washed away the bridge crossing over the said river. Our sewer line was attached to this bridge, so when the floods swept the bridge away, our sewer line was obviously washed away in the process. As a way forward, we want to re-route the sewer line into a user-friendly and safer area, and are currently doing the cost estimate for the refurbishment project. Because of the ‘uneasiness’ of the terrain, we will need about two weeks to work on it.”
Mkhonza says that the district municipality is ‘trying to fix the damage and also find a permanent solution’ and calls on affected communities to ‘exercise patience’.
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