Pedestrian safety has been thrust into the spotlight after Edenvale resident Demetri Varonou fell into an unmarked hole along Herman Street.

Varonou fell into the one metre deep hole, near the corner of Herman and Kruin streets, dislocating and breaking his left ankle on December 11.

Varonou said on the day he fell into the hole, he was assessing work done by some of his employees.

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Varonou said he was standing on the pathway near the corner when pedestrians needed to walk past him.

When he moved out of the way for them to pass, that is when he fell into the hole.

After falling into the hole, Varonou managed to drag himself out and was assisted by members of the community who had witnessed what happened.

He said that on the day he fell into the hole, the grass at the corner of Kruin and Herman streets was long and overgrown; since then, it has been cut short.

Varonou subsequently needed an operation to fix the dislocation, followed by another operation during which pins and plates were placed in his ankle.

A few weeks after his operation, Varonou’s cast was removed, and he was given a moon boot and explicitly told by his doctor not to put any weight on his foot for at least three months.

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“My biggest problem at the moment is not the pain from the operation, it’s the nerve damage under the foot,” said Varonou.

“The way it was explained to me, the surgeons had to cut through all my muscles to gain access before scraping away the broken pieces of ankle bone, before they could put the plates and pins in.”

He said that, being in the signage industry, his livelihood has been affected since the hole he fell into.

Varonou said he can’t see any clients or take the necessary measurements.

Although Varonou said it was good, the grass had been cut, but more needs to be done to safeguard pedestrians.

“This is a disaster waiting to happen. What happens if a child falls in?”

“Someone will get horribly and seriously hurt if they fall in here, I already did,” said Varonou.

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“The public uses this area to walk, and someone needs to be held accountable for this.”

A request for comment was sent to the City of Ekuhuleni on February 4, with a deadline of February 6 at 14:00.

At the time of going to print, no comment was received.