POMONA residents were forced to live with an open trench for about a month after a huge water leak was repaired just outside their yard.
The water leak, which was at 36 Fouche Street in Extension Three of the suburb, was fixed by contractors hired by the Ekurhuleni Metro, ward councillor Pieter Henning explained.
According to Henning, the water leak was first reported to the Water and Sanitation Department, which repaired the leak within five days.
“Then it took them another month to finally fill the open trench and do a bit of cleaning around the area,” Henning said.
“The trench was closed on either May 12 or May 13 (more than a month from when it was left open).”
Henning sent various emails to the Water Services Operations Department in Kempton, enquiring why the water leak was repaired but the trench was left open for weeks on end.
One of the emails, sent on April 20, was sent two weeks after the repairing of the water leak and questioned why the trench was left open and why there was no taping or warning signs placed around the trench to warn motorists and pedestrians of the danger.
Another email (sent on May 8, a month after the trench had been left open) read:
“It is now one month since you repaired this major water leak at the above address (36 Fouche Street), yet the trench is still not filled as yet. The gravel lying in the road has been a danger to all motorists for one month.
“All my mails on this matter since the repairs, requesting information as to when the clean-up and filling will take place, have been ignored. The community have requested information about the contractor who was used and this you have also failed to supply.”
Although the trench was closed, a section of the residents’ grass has been destroyed and filled with soil, and they will have to fix the pavement at their own cost.
There was also soil left on the street which had not been cleaned up by either the metro officials or contractors hired to do the job.
