Council’s half job leaves a gaping hole at property
The project apparently started in March last year.
Western Ext resident Mohammed Jeewa has been left to live with the results of poor workmanship by City of Ekurhuleni (CoE) employees, who left a gaping hole near his property on the corner of West Street and Woburn Avenue.
Jeewa claimed that the hole was dug up in front of his pedestrian gate last March, seemingly to connect water pipes on West Street. But the employees have since left the work unfinished and without closing it, while their shoddy work has also left a big pothole on the corner of West Street and Cranbourne Avenue.
He explained that he’s worried about the dangers the hole, which is cordoned off with a plastic cover, poses to pedestrian who use the street daily, especially school children who could easily fall into it.
Furthermore, he said the recent heavy rain led to the collapse of the ground, causing the hole to expand closer to his wall fence.
“I’m worried about my boundary wall. They left the hole like this since last year March. They dug it up in front of my pedestrian gate. Because of the rain, it’s getting bigger and bigger,” Jeewa said.
Also Read: Tumbling does wonders for child with cerebral palsy
The Benoni City Times visited the area on February 21. We found the unfinished hole with a concrete slab, surrounded by steel rods. The recent rain seemed to have saturated the soil, causing the ground next to Jeema’s wall fence to collapse.
Further up West Street, motorists weaved their way around a pothole left by the city employees after they dug up the ground to install a water pipe.
The rain also caused the soil in a trench next to the BAPS Shri Swaminarayan to saturate while piles of plastic pipes were laid out across the street.
Jeema was infuriated by this, saying it devalued his property.
“This is very ugly. It’s right in front of my property. If you look at my house, it’s clean and my garden is beautiful. This hole makes me furious. It’s an ugly view in front of my house.”
He appealed to the municipality to finish the job before someone gets hurt or his property is affected.
“According to the CoE, the contractor took the money and ran away. But why has nobody come to close it? They told me if I do anything to close the hole, I will be fined. Why don’t they come to finish the job?” he asked.
We have sent a query to the CoE. We are awaiting a response.
Also Read: Traffic, parking issues cause stir on Woburn Avenue
