Residents of Buntu Court in Bellavista, south of Johannesburg, say they have been left without a reliable water supply for nearly five months, raising serious concerns about hygiene, health and basic living conditions.

According to multiple residents, approximately 16 units in the block of flats have been affected by what they describe as a burst pipe located just outside the building. While clean water continues to flow visibly down the road from the damaged infrastructure, residents say their taps remain dry.

“It’s painful to see water going to waste while we have none inside,” said one resident. “We’ve logged complaints, made calls, and followed up countless times, but nothing changes.”

Daily life disrupted

The lack of running water has forced residents to adopt extreme coping mechanisms. Many rely on buckets to collect and store water whenever it becomes briefly available, often at unpredictable hours.

@southern.courierWhile clean water flows wasted from a burst pipe outside Buntu Court, residents inside 16 units endure sleepless nights, unsafe sanitation and growing health risks. Full story on southerncourier.co.za

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Residents report that water occasionally returns in the early hours of the morning, sometimes as early as 03:00.

This has created an exhausting routine, with families waking in the middle of the night to fill containers, bathe and prepare for the day ahead.

“We can’t sleep properly,” another resident explained. “When the water comes, you have no choice – you must wake up immediately. You fill buckets, you try to wash, and you prepare the children for school. Then by morning, it’s gone again.”

Hygiene and health risks

The ongoing outage has significantly impacted sanitation within the building. Without a consistent water supply, flushing toilets have become a daily challenge, forcing residents to manually pour buckets of water into the toilets when water is available.

This situation has heightened fears around hygiene, particularly in shared living spaces. Poor sanitation increases the risk of illness, especially for children and vulnerable individuals.

An elderly resident who also lives in one of the units shared that she has been extremely affected. She highlighted that she struggles to carry heavy buckets of water and is sometimes forced to rely on others for assistance.
“It’s not just inconvenient, it’s inhumane,” said the elderly resident.

“We older people cannot live like this. Carrying buckets is physically demanding, and it’s unsafe.”

Stagnant water adds to danger

Adding to residents’ frustration is the sight of clean water continuously flowing from the burst pipe outside, with nowhere to drain properly. The water has begun to collect and stagnate in the area around it.

Residents warn that this stagnant water is becoming a breeding ground for bacteria, algae and mosquitoes. Over time, it is becoming an unsafe, low-oxygen, foul-smelling environment that poses additional public health risks.

“We are worried about diseases. Mosquitoes are increasing, the smell is getting worse, and it’s all because something that should have been fixed months ago is being ignored,” added the residents.

Calls for urgent intervention

Despite repeated attempts to escalate the issue, residents say they have received little to no feedback on when repairs will be carried out. The prolonged disruption has left many feeling neglected and desperate for answers.

“This is not just about water anymore,” the residents emphasised. “It’s about dignity, health and being heard.”

Residents are calling on authorities to urgently address the burst pipe and restore a consistent water supply to the affected units before conditions deteriorate further.

At the time of publication, the Comaro Chronicle and Southern Courier reached out to Johannesburg Water for comment but had not received a response.