No plain sailing for yachties in Richards Bay
The yachties have been forced to live without electricity for at least three weeks
PEOPLE living aboard their yachts at the Small Craft Harbour are at their wits’ end after having had their electricity cut without reason three weeks ago, reportedly by Transnet National Ports Authority (TNPA), .
‘We cannot cook, cannot keep food cold, one person is diabetic and had to buy a generator just to prevent his medication from going off, and we cannot operate our bilge pumps should our boats start taking on water,’ said one ‘yachtie’ who preferred to remain anonymous.
‘We have not received mooring invoices from TNPA since 2009 and we don’t get anywhere when trying to ask how we can pay our fees.’
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He said they have also been ordered to have their yachts surveyed but, when one person booked his survey for mid-July, he was allegedly informed that his boat would be towed away before then.
‘All we are asking for is transparency but whenever we speak to anyone at TNPA, we are bounced around from person to person and no one ever gets back to us.’
They feel TNPA is purposefully trying to remove pleasure craft from the harbour and that they will, one day soon, be forcibly removed without warning. A response from TNPA was still forthcoming at the time of going to print.
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