Water supply to the Standerton community is under strain

The sluice gate at the Standerton water treatment plant underwent repairs as scheduled. According to the communications department of the Lekwa Municipality, the gate does not close completely.

An assessment of the sump was conducted to identify any underlying issues that might be affecting its functionality.

Water supply was temporarily disrupted in Wards 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, and 15. Lekwa rendered an apology for the inconvenience caused and gave the assurance that they were working diligently to rectify the situation.

The sluice gate is used for raw water extraction, meaning water is taken from the Vaal River. The Standerton Advertiser took photos of the river the past week and sludge was noticeable.

A plastic bottle drifted past and the environmental aspect speaks volumes. Residents in certain areas in Lantana Crescent and also Kerk, Beyers Naudé, Paarl, Leyds, Kruger, Kieser, and Caledon streets recently had no water supply.

The raw water abstraction volume dropped at the plant and supply to the community of Wards 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11 and 15 was, therefore, affected.

Lekwa undertook to clean the water abstraction sump to remove foreign objects. Residents also voiced their frustration on a WhatsApp-group with low water pressure. Raw water pumping units arrived at the plant and were offloaded.

According to the municipality, the installation of the first pumping unit would have been completed on May 15 to improve the abstraction volume and ultimately improve supply to the community.

According to a previous communiqué, a team had conducted cleaning operations at the plant to remove any foreign objects.

Lekwa was also awaiting the installation of four new water turbine pumps by Seriti. The newspaper contacted Lubabalo Majenge, communications manager at Lekwa via email on May 17, asking whether the pumps have been installed.

Comment on the challenges experienced with raw water abstraction was requested as well. The installation was expected to enhance abstraction volume and improve water supply to the community.

Clean water, however, regularly flows in Coligny Street from the Kieser Reservoir. With no load-shedding at the moment, which influences water supply, it was not only mid-town taking the hammering.

Certain areas in Sakhile had intermittent supply as well. Alberto Franco, DA-councillor, paid a visit to the water treatment plant two months ago.

“The plant is struggling with abstraction due to problems with the pumps,” Franco then said.

“Only two of the pumps are functional.”

The municipality and the Freedom Front Plus attempted previously to solve the water problem. According to the information, the valves were checked.

Lekwa communicates regularly on the situation and keeps residents updated. Their communications department indicated on May 17 on a power outage at the Standerton Water Treatment Plant.

The outage was attributed to a fault on the electrical line leading to the facility, resulting in the blowing of the fuse.

Their technical team was on-site to address the issue and restore power as swiftly as possible. Lekwa said every effort was made to minimise any inconvenience caused.