Inanda resident and member of the Sandton South Residents and Ratepayers Association, Cherylanne Elshikh said she noticed the hole while walking on Forest Road. Upon further investigation she noticed that the hole was in fact a damaged manhole cover which covered a 4m drop into the ground.
“When I saw it I began to worry because someone could definitely fall down and hurt themselves,” said Elshikh. She immediately reported the case to the Johannesburg Roads Agency.
Marketing and communications manager for the Johannesburg Roads Agency (JRA), Bertha Peters-Scheepers said, “The first thing we do is make the area safe by placing cones around the broken manhole and in effect warning the public. Then we go about establishing whether it is a JRA or Joburg Water manhole because both are different sizes and dimensions.”
Though there has not been confirmation as to the reason why the manhole was damaged Scheepers said, “We have experienced a great deal of theft and vandalism to the manholes which definitely affects the public. A fair number of individuals steal these covers because they’re made of steel or iron which is a material they could use.”
Scheepers added that the agency was looking to find an alternative material to make the manhole covers to reduce theft, and also regularly dispatch inspectors in various areas to make sure that their manholes are in good condition.
Ward councillor of Ward 91, Andrew Stewart said maintenance of roads was difficult for the agency as its budget hindered them from carrying out the amount of work they needed to do.
Stewart said, “Residents have to understand that JRA’s budget is spread out quarterly, so they are constantly assessing each case and dealing with the ones they see as more important or life-threatening. So if nothing is done, its not because of incompetence, but rather because of the very small budget they have received which they have to spread out through the whole year.”
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