Sewer blockage poses health challenges for Spruitview family

Pensioner Thoko Mngomezulu (73) and her family have been faced with unbearable living conditions because of a sewer blockage.

Mngomezulu, from Siluma Drive, Spruitview, said they have been stuck with a blocked sewer inside their yard for more than a month.

Kathorus MAIL visited the family and found the drain near the storeroom was still pumping out wastewater, adding the water had turned green.

The Mngomezulu family are not the only ones affected. They have a tenant who rents a backroom in their yard and two dogs that are exposed to the horrible smell.

Mngomezulu and her husband, Joseph Mngomezulu (75), rely on wheelchairs to move around. She said before they could fix such issues for themselves, but now they cannot because of their condition.

“This thing started seven weeks ago. At first, we thought it was a minor problem, so we hired plumbers to fix it. After the first plumber came, we thought the drain was fixed, but the following day it was blocked again.

“We called another plumber who said the problem needs to be referred to the municipality. “He was honest and did not try to convince us that he can get the job done. We called the municipality, but our calls were not answered. We ended up engaging with the councillor’s office,” said Mngomezulu.

She said the councillor also reported the matter and the municipality workers but they did not fix the sewage, explaining they wanted to fix it from the main sewer line that is at the back, opposite their neighbour’s home.

“They came to the house several times, but the gate was locked. They asked us to clean and remove items that were near the drain so that when they returned, they could start working. My child cleaned it immediately when they left, but they did not return,” she said.

She said what hurts her the most is that they live with children who are still attending school; two of them are twins aged five and the oldest is nine years old.

“We are affected by mosquitoes and flies. Sometimes while we are sitting inside the house, we still smell the drain water,” said Mngomezulu.

The CoE intervene

The CoE spokesperson Zweli Dlamini said the City received the complaint on February 8 and a team was dispatched on the following day.

He said the dispatched workers found that the complainant has a wendy house placed where the municipal connection is situated and they were requested to remove the obstacle first to allow for repairs as they have already established that the pipe might be broken.

The matter was escalated and instruction was issued to the external service provider to attend.

“Due to backlog the service provider was unable to attend to the complaint immediately but have sent a team. The matter is now attended to and should be completed in due course,” said Dlamini.

Mngomezulu confirmed that the sewer is functioning properly. She thanked the councillor for his assistance.