WENTWORTH residents, who developed various health problems due to air pollution from a gas leak at a company in the vicinity of Hime Street flats, are up in arms over the lack of response from the company allegedly responsible for the noxious fumes.
After experiencing unbearable symptoms due to the gas leakage, residents gathered outside the company last week and demanded that the visible leakage be repaired or the company shut down. Communications officer of the Wentworth police station, Captain Mbuso Gumede, said police were called out to monitor the protest action and confirmed that the situation remained under control.
Results from tests facilitated by the South Durban Environmental Alliance (SDCEA) and conducted at ChemTech Lab in Pretoria, confirmed that residents have been inhaling components of dowtherm chemical, such as diphenyl oxide, biphenyl, benzene and toluene, which allegedly leaked from a company situated in close proximity to Hime Street flats, over the past few weeks.
While some residents battled to breathe, others reported symptoms including skin and eye irritation, as well as a sore throat, nausea and headaches.
Bongani Mthembu, air quality officer for SDCEA, said it was pathetic that the community continuously experienced either chemical explosions or spills from the industries surrounding them. “In 2019, a leakage from the same company caused hundreds of people to become seriously ill. The type of chemical that leaks settles on garments, curtains, sofas, and other surfaces, where it remains.
“This is not a high-earning or elite community, yet the health of this community is continuously being disregarded by government and these industries. Authorities at the company have been arrogant and when contacted, they feel that they don’t owe any explanation or apology to any resident,” said Mthembu.
Resident, Desiree Bishop, who has been helping residents from the Hime Street flats area to seek medical assistance and file complaints, said although they are the fence-line community and the first ones impacted, there had been no proper feedback from the company.
“Many of us couldn’t breathe and were affected by the fumes, which brought about fear as we remembered what happened in 2019, when there was a visible cloud over our community and the smell and its effects were so bad that we had to leave our homes for about three days.
“This time, when we monitored the situation, we found that at night, the chemical is being leaked. Are we being treated like lab animals, where our lives and health does not matter? When we go to the toilet at night, we smell the fumes. We wake up with a cough, tight chest, and are out of breath. We all have the same symptoms. The company still has not done anything to assist us and most people here live below the breadline, where specialised medical treatment is unaffordable. Will there be change only if someone dies because of this situation?” said Bishop.
According to Mthembu, in 2019, residents and SDCEA, forced the company and government to make sure that there was a 24-hour clinic so that people could seek medical assistance at any time.
“We keep forcing companies to be accountable. The health of residents in this area is already fragile due to them living in a chemical zone, just above the Jacobs area. “We have been putting pressure on officials to oversee these industries, but they are reluctant to force and act as officials.”
Numerous attempts to obtain a comment from the company proved futile.
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