Injured pensioner bemoans poor state of roads
Moodley hopes that the municipality can now see how dangerous these neglected potholes and damaged roads can really be, especially to the elderly.
While on his daily afternoon walk, Park Rynie resident Jimmy Moodley (72) fell into a damaged section of road – which had initially been a pothole – just a few metres from his home on Guy Close.
In the process, he injured his leg and arm.
Moodley has been walking on Guy Close (which branches off from Alkins Drive) for many years and said that potholes have been a major problem on these two roads, in particular.
“Year after year I complain about potholes and when they’re eventually filled, it only lasts a short period of time before they return to their usual state,” he said.
“The condition of these roads are getting worse by the day, especially during heavy rain which we experienced a week ago.”
The situation has deteriorated over the past several weeks as what is believed to be underground water has started flowing through Guy Close, leaving behind slimy and slippery matter, with this water seeping into the damaged parts of the road.
On the day of Moodley’s incident, it was the ground water and matter standing on the road which caused him to slip and lose his balance before stumbling on a section of damaged road.
“I sustained wounds on my ankle, knee and on my arm near my elbow which bled non-stop for the first day and my leg wounds caused me excruciating pain for the first couple of days after the fall.”
“I couldn’t bear the pain anymore after days had passed and the swelling didn’t go down, so I went to the doctor and he put me on antibiotics.”
To Moodley’s misfortune, the fall also resulted in his cellphone screen being shattered, adding to his unnecessary costs to bear as a pensioner.
Moodley hopes that the municipality can now see how dangerous these neglected potholes and damaged roads can really be, especially to the elderly.
“Something has to be done soon before somebody else gets hurt or a vehicle badly damaged.”
“I also hope something is done to permanently prevent the underground water from worsening the road’s condition.”
Umdoni Municipality has been made aware of the incident and a response is awaited.
HAVE YOUR SAY
Like the South Coast Herald’s Facebook page, follow us on Twitter and Instagram
