Nombuso Shabalala, spokesperson of Johannesburg Water, has confirmed that the ageing of the infrastructure is the cause of the underground pipe leaks at the corner of Ella Street and Harry Sneech Roads, Strijdom Park.
“The pipe keeps on bursting as it can no longer sustain the pressure. Whenever the job was reported, the Johannesburg Water team would respond, however, since this is an old steel pipe once water is opened, another burst would occur within a few days.”
There have been three pipe leaks in between the intersections. Resident Susan Findlay explained that the contractors fixed the pipe but it was back leaking the same day.
Shabalala explained that this is due to fluctuations in working and residual pressures due to time of day, demand, usage, etc.
“The latter variables lead to air pockets entering the system that ultimately results into water hammer.”
Water hammer refers to a pressure surge from a rapid change in the flow velocity where the pressure at the point of the burst exceeds the design pressure of the pipeline.
“This phenomenon is often exacerbated by ageing infrastructure, subsoil conditions, high water table, seasonal temperature fluctuations and other factors beyond the control of Johannesburg Water.”
Asked if is there a permanent solution to this, Shabalala stated that since 2017, repairs were carried out on some of the bulk infrastructure (i.e. water pipes) as and when required and Johannesburg Water has plans in place to continue replacing major sections of infrastructure.
“The entity has prioritised the renewal of the bulk water main system which commenced in the 2022/23 financial year. Furthermore, Johannesburg Water plans to replace 87.9km of water infrastructure and 78.2km of sewer infrastructure in the next five years commencing from the 2023/24 financial year.”
The corner of Ella Street and Harry Sneech Road is closed because of the hole that was dug by the contractors and left full of water.
Findlay explained that they did come and drain the water afterwards but it is full again.
Shabalala said the challenge faced by the entity is the lack of financial resources to address this infrastructure backlog within an acceptable time frame. However, Johannesburg Water continues to prioritise the replacement of infrastructure within the allocated limited funding.
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