A ‘hole’ lot of problems
ROBIN HILLS – A hole in the pavement was left open for months due to the repair of a leaking pipe.
A family is at their wit’s end after a gigantic hole was left on their pavement for months due to the repair of a leaking pipe.
The gaping eyesore has been left to stand outside of the Aravena’s property on Eland Street for the past four months, with sporadical work taking place every few weeks.
On 10 September, a team working on fixing the leak hit the main water line for the street, resulting in a temporary water shutdown in the area while the team sorted the problem out.
Angelique Aravena said the issue had been an ongoing problem for the past three years.
She said, “Besides the fact that there is a massive hole in our pavement, the issue is also damaging the road causing potholes. I just wish that I had a concrete explanation of what the problem is and why it is taking so long to fix. All I know is that the water pipes were leaking and had to be replaced.”
Aravena added that this was not the first time the problematic pipes have given trouble.
“In 2016, I reported the problem of leaking pipes to Johannesburg Water, which at that time completely saturated the street with greywater. I was so worried that with stormwater drain covers being left open and the actual state of the water that it would harm schoolchildren who use our road.”
The problem in 2016 was attended to but raised its head again in January this year.
Ward 98 councillor Beverley Weweje said, “Once a leak or a burst pipe has been repaired, Johannesburg Water has a waiting period of between two to three days to ensure that the repair is of standard.
“At the moment, there is a miscommunication problem with the Johannesburg Roads Agency (JRA) and Johannesburg Water that the City is looking to resolve very soon. Last week, the mayor met with members of JRA to help to solve the communication issue with the two entities.”
Johannesburg Water’s Isaac Dhludhlu said, “We can only contact the JRA to close an area that we have been working on once we are satisfied that the problem won’t persist. In this particular case, all pipes have been fixed, so we have logged the repair with the JRA to close the pavement.”
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