Water crisis in Kokosi Extension 6: Residents struggle as municipal response falls short
This town is also being affected by the water problems.
For the past two weeks, residents of Kokosi Extension 6 in Fochville have been living without reliable access to running water, with many struggling to meet their basic needs.
The ongoing water shortage has forced residents to rely on water tankers that are only delivered twice a day, leaving many without water for hours on end. Despite repeated complaints, the Merafong Local Municipality has yet to provide a formal response or a clear plan of action to address the crisis.
On October 31, local community leader Excellent Thabiso Ngonze invited a journalist from the Carletonville Herald to visit the area and witness the situation firsthand.
According to Ngonze, the water tanker deliveries are insufficient to meet the needs of the community, and many residents are being left without any water at all.
“We are grateful for the water tankers, but two deliveries a day simply aren’t enough to sustain our community. People are struggling to survive without water in their homes,” said Ngonze. “We don’t have running taps, there’s no water for our toilets, and families are being forced to wait for hours just to get a small supply of water. It’s not sustainable, and the municipality isn’t doing enough to fix this.”
The lack of running water in homes has made daily life in Kokosi Extension 6 a constant struggle. With no access to water for basic sanitation, residents are forced to queue for water from the tankers, which are often insufficient for their needs. Families, especially those with young children and the elderly, are left without a reliable water source, and many are forced to make do with what little they can collect.
“We can’t live like this anymore,” said Lida Bongi, a resident of Extension 6. “We don’t have water for cooking, cleaning, or even for our toilets. We’ve been relying on these tankers for two weeks, but sometimes there’s not enough to go around. It’s unbearable, and it’s affecting our health too.”
Frans Lungi, another local resident, expressed his frustration: “We have to queue for hours, and even then, the water runs out quickly. It’s chaos. We can’t even flush our toilets or wash our hands properly. It’s a basic human right to have water, but right now, it feels like we’ve been forgotten.”
The situation is especially difficult for households with children and the elderly, who rely on clean water for health and hygiene. Many fear that the continued lack of water could lead to a public health crisis in the community, especially as the hot summer months approach.
“People are already getting sick,” said Bongi. “We’re living in unsanitary conditions, and the longer this goes on, the worse it’s going to get. The municipality needs to take action now before things spiral out of control.”
