Umgeni mouth cleared of silt

DURBANITES flocked to Blue Lagoon last Thursday to watch as the municipality tried to clear silt which had clogged the mouth of the Umgeni River.

The river mouth became blocked last week, causing water levels to rise and covering reeds and mangroves beneath the water, as well as the flooding cycle and walkways.

Concerned runners, cyclists and those residing close to Blue Lagoon noticed the water levels rising under Athlone Bridge.

Calvin Gabriel, a runner who trains daily along Blue Lagoon and the beachfront promenade, said, “If the water was any higher they would have had to close the bridge.

“I noticed over the last weekend the water levels were raised, but from Monday, even when the tide was out, you couldn’t see the reeds and mangroves, while normally you see everything. The water was standing, so we alerted the Parks Department.”

Gabriel said the problem had escalated over the week, “You can’t even cycle or run under the bridge. It took a while before something was done.” He believed the problem arose after the rock project at the pier in Blue Lagoon. “Since then we noticed flooding during high tide; prior to the project completion water would flow in and out normally,” he said.

On Thursday crowds of people came down to the lagoon to watch as an excavator dug out sand from the mouth so water could flow from the flooded river mouth.

A resident who brought his daughters to watch the 'out of the ordinary' sight said, “What is most important is that they are able to drain the estuary. The ecology is suffering so we need nature to get its balance back.”

Ricardo Andrew rushed out during his lunch break to see what was happening. “We heard it on the radio. Its quite bad – we couldn't walk from Blue Lagoon through the walkway. Seeing them open up the sand bank is interesting,” he said.

Local fisherman, Thilak Rambachan, said he got a shock when he arrived to fish on Thursday. “Normally I fish under the bridge, but the whole place is under water. I've been fishing here for more than fifty years; its beautiful but they haven't taken the fishermen into consideration. The natural habitat in front of the pier is gone since they revamped.

“I hope they sort out the problem so we can fish under the bridge again,” he added.

While overseeing the operation, Godfrey Vela, a senior coastal manager at eThekwini, said the problem arose because there was not enough water in the Umgeni River to push the seawater out. “The lack of river water in the catchment area, and recent high spring tides which pushed the sand up and formed a high sand bank, caused the problem. It is having a detrimental effect on the mangroves, and flooded out the model yacht pond and part of the Windsor Golf Course,”explained Vela. He said another day of excavation is expected to bring the water levels down.

“This week water levels have receded and things are back to normal,” Gabriel said. Cyclists and runners are once again able to use the route under the bridge.