Toti Lagoon is almost free of water hyacinth and aquatic weeds after a hard weekend’s work by the Army Saints and its helpers.
Not content with waiting for eThekwini Municipality to clean up the Toti River, a group of civic-minded volunteers who call themselves the Army Saints started cutting and pulling water hyacinth and weeds out of the river and lagoon recently.
“We had about 30 amazing people who came to lend a helping hand and we pulled out quite a lot of water hyacinth,” said the Saints’ Justine Purcell.
“The guys working the paddle boats even lent us two boats and helped to load up the weed in the middle of the lagoon and pull it to shore. It made the work much easier.
A big thank you to Mark Pontes of Toti Canoe Club, who cooked boerewors rolls for all the Saints after their hard day’s work.
Now that the river’s edge is clear, I hope more hands join us to clear the sides of the lagoon.”
The Saints had a pleasant surprise when two passing Queensburgh bikers joined in. “They were riding past when they saw us all working, so they decided to stop and help out for a short while. They were dressed up and not even from our town, but they stopped what they were doing and put in some effort. It was inspiring.”
The Saints will be in action again on Sunday, 15 June, with a braai afterwards at Toti Canoe Club. Meet at Ollies at 10am.
