Incidents, during which cars are damaged, are just waiting to happen.
Mr Andrew Turner had the misfortune of becoming one of the gaping holes’ victims this past weekend.
Turner and a friend were travelling home from work at around 02:30 on Saturday, when he had no alternative but to drive through the hole which was left after municipal workers dug a trench on both sides of the road.
As he got near the robot close to the hole, he came alongside another car which was driving erratically, so he tried to wait for another opportunity to pass.
“As they went through the robot opposite CTM, he tried to move left to miss the pothole he knew was there, but the other driver decided at same time to move into Andrew’s lane again, so he had to move over fast and thought better to go closer to pavement than hit the pothole straight on,” Andrew’s mom, Ms Denise Turner, picked up the story.
She said he thought the side of the hole near pavement was not so big, but the hole is bigger towards the pavement.
“As he went into it he felt the gears go and lost first and second gear immediately. He kept the car going and managed to call home, asking us to open the gates so he could get in without stopping as the gears were starting to burn,” Ms Turner said.
Andrew’s car is now at a friend who has his own car repair workshop and he is waiting to find out what the cost will be.
“I pay for the insurance on this car. It is Andrew’s only method of transport to work. We are dreading the bill to repair the car as Andrew only earns R4 000 a month. To make extra money he works in the evenings and weekends, doing private gate motor installations and repairs, lighting for nightclubs and he has a good customer base, even in Middelburg.
“This is all on hold now, as there’s no car for him to carry on unless I give him mine if I am not using it myself,” Ms Turner said.
She commented further,”I am mad, as only the night before I had seen someone else on Facebook complaining about the damage to his car tyre and rim. I commented, asking if it was Mandela Street, and he replied yes and my luck, Andrew hits the same hole a few hours later doing more damage. I complained in the week about these holes as I nearly hit the one on the side going to the mall. I knew the two potholes were going to cause a lot of damage to cars, especially in heavy traffic when you cannot move over to miss them.
“The council really needs to start taking responsibility for all the damage their staff causes, when digging up when either replacing water pipes or cables. They just push whatever sand there is back into the hole regardless if it leaves a section still open. When it comes to a road, they don’t even bother to tar the section so that the pothole remains closed and doesn’t open with all the traffic passing or the rain.”
Facebook users have requested warning signs be put up in Mandela Street, warning drivers of the holes.
Road users are also warned about the potholes forming in OR Tambo Street, drive with caution.
The issue of potholes has been raised with the local municipality. There has been no feedback from their side by the time going to print.
