Pipelines in Withok Estates leading to Ergo Mining (DRDGold), carrying waste to be treated, burst on the evening of May 17, leaving Koot Street covered in slurry.

The following day, Ergo officials met with the affected residents and began a cleanup operation that continued until May 19.

“They cleaned all day yesterday (Monday), and in the afternoon they cleaned in front of the driveways so we can get in,” said Kobus Bierman, one of the residents affected along Koot Street.

“Today (Tuesday) I had to put in leave as they came inside the yards of the flats to clean, and I needed to watch my dogs.”

According to him, spills like this, often from a burst pipe, occur from time to time, but Ergo has always cleaned it up in a timely and satisfactory manner.

Ergo confirmed the incident.

“On Sunday evening at 20:15, Ergo Mining’s (a subsidiary of DRDGOLD) monitoring systems detected an abnormal change in pressure and flow on one of its slurry pipelines in the Withok area.

“The pipeline was immediately taken offline, and emergency response teams were dispatched to inspect the line,” the company explained in a statement.

“By 21:20, the affected section on Koot Street had been identified and repair work was already underway. The pipeline was safely returned to operation by 08:20 on Monday morning, while specialist clean-up teams arrived on site at around 08:00 to begin remediation work.

“The spill affected traffic flow in the area and impacted a small number of neighbouring residential properties situated alongside the pipeline route.

“Representatives met directly with affected residents on Monday and continue to engage with them as clean-up activities progress.

“The company’s immediate priority was to contain the spill, restore the affected area as quickly as possible and ensure that affected residents’ concerns were addressed and that they were kept informed throughout the process.

“Daily inspections, continuous 24-hour monitoring systems and advanced leak detection technology form part of the safeguards in place across DRDGOLD’s pipeline network to identify abnormalities early and enable rapid response should an incident occur.

“There was a previous pipeline-related incident recorded in the area in 2023. While incidents of this nature are not common, each incident is formally investigated and response measures are reviewed as part of the company’s ongoing operational and environmental management processes.

“The affected section of pipeline has been removed and taken to DRDGOLD’s engineering workshops for detailed technical assessment to determine the cause of the leak.”

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