Water woes plague residents

GLENWOOD and Morningside residents have been plagued by endless water woes over recent months and are hoping there is an end in sight.

Last Wednesday motorists driving along Che Guevara (Moore) Road were faced with terrible traffic delays on the busy road after a sinkhole developed overnight.

Sinkholes developing in Glenwood have become a common occurrence in recent weeks with this being the third to appear in the past month.

According to a resident of the Newton Place cul-de-sac, Dalone Jansen, he went across the road to buy pizza between 9 and 10pm and there was no sign of the sinkhole. “It was fine when I came home that night so it must have happened in the middle of the night.

“There was complete chaos in the morning, when people were trying to get out of our road to get to work,” he said.

Another resident of the area, Estelle Hughes, recalled hearing a “bang” and explosion before realising that a water pipe had burst and observed water gushing. She said residents were without water for most of the day, but the water department had worked through the night to ensure it was fixed. “Kudos to the team, the municipality and water department always get bad mouthed for not doing the job, but this time they deserve a pat on the back!”

Ward councillor for Glenwood, Mmabatho Tembe, said she was glad the Water Department had arrived early and worked quickly and efficiently to get the job done. “There has also been a history of sinkhole’s in Glenwood not being filled once the job is done so I’m glad it was properly fixed,” she added.

However, Morningside residents have not been so fortunate. Since water restrictions were introduced in August, residents say they have had to contend with constant pipe bursts as a result. Chutrapal Panday, a Ninth Avenue resident said he woke up to no water around 4.30am on Tuesday, “There was a burst pipe on Montpelier Road and another one last week, it has become a weekly occurrence! My grandchildren could not even have a bath before going to school, its ridiculous,” the angry resident added.

Stephanie Reuben who lives in neighbouring Florida Road said not only was there no notification of water cuts, but no water truck had been sent to give residents water in the morning. The water was restored around 2pm. “It was terribly inconvenient, we normally have cuts in the evenings and water is back in the morning but this was the first time we had a cut in the morning. Many families had to get ready for work and school without a hot breakfast, coffee and bath. My neighbour had to cancel a morning appointment and go elsewhere to have a bath,” she explained.

Morningside ward councillor Martin Meyer, said he together with councillors Chris Pappas (ward 31) and Mmabatho Thembe had met with the Water Department on Tuesday afternoon to discuss the recent water recurring issues. “They have agreed to halt the water shutdowns for two weeks while investigating options. They will be monitoring water levels every night and every morning to see if it has stabilised. We urge residents to please use water sparingly between these hours. The Water Department agrees that we are losing more water now than we did before the restrictions were put in place,” he said.

Any water related faults can be reported on the City's WhatsApp water reporting line 0731483477 to immediately report water related faults to the municipality and in turn, expedite the Municipality’s response to the fault.