Residents of Douglas Crescent have been without water since 2 February due to a burst pipe.
The pipe burst on 28 February and only on 3 March Joburg Water sent out units to come and fix the burst pipe. “The units were only there for an hour and they just left the hole they dug because their boss said that he would not pay them overtime,” said one of the furious residents.
Resident Courtenay Hartbottle of North Gate View said, “This is very frustrating. If Joburg Water had reacted when they were initially called, the problem would not have escalated.”
The water was flooding into the North Gate View complex, where it reached the doors of some homes and was overflowing from the storm water drain because of the volume of water. Another resident said that when she called Joburg Water a second time, the call centre agent wanted to know why she was calling again because she had called before.
Residents have been using swimming pool water and the water from the dug-up hole to flush their toilets and to do their laundry. “There are babies in these units and they are suffering because of this,” said another angry resident who did not want to be named.
Most of the residents that were present during the interview are trustees and chairpersons for their complexes and they admitted that residents were very angry about the situation.
One Jojo water tank was provided after the block was promised four tanks. Residents complained that one tank is not enough and it is too far for some residents who live further down the road to get to.
Ward 101 Councillor Ralf Bittkau said he was not aware of the burst pipe, “I will take it up with Joburg Water as soon as I have all the details.”
External communications officer for Joburg Water, Eleanor Mavimbela said, “The team has been on site today doing repairs. They estimate that they should be done by late afternoon, meaning that water will only be restored later this evening around 8pm.
Mavimbela also said that there is only one tanker provided for the area and that Joburg Water will ensure that the tanker gets refilled as soon as it is empty so that the residents would have enough water.
