YOLANDA POTGIETER of Birchleigh writes:
Let me start by saying that if you want your blood pressure to reach dangerous levels, phone the water and sanitation “emergency” call centre to report a burst water pipe in the midst of a national water shortage crisis.
The public has been told there are water restrictions in place and that we need to report leaks and burst pipes as a matter of urgency.
On September 1, I came home to no water. After enquiring, I realised it was just our house that had no water. I went to investigate and found the water feed to our property had burst before my water meter on the municipality’s side and that the clean water was gushing down the road.
Also read:
• No water restrictions in Ekurhuleni – yet
• DA wants to know why Ekurhuleni loses nearly 40% of its water
• Water crisis looms in Ekurhuleni as metro stays mum
• Water pipes pop, one after the other
I immediately phoned the call centre and reported this at 6.06pm. I gave all my details and explained what the problem was.
I received a reference number and was told that I could phone in four hours time if no-one had come out yet.
I phoned again at 9pm, then at 10pm, at which stage they told me all they had on the system was that I had no water. I explained again that the pipe had burst and that clean water was being wasted. No one came to fix the leak that night.
The next morning I phoned again at 5.40am and they could not give me any news/feedback. I again phoned at 5.47am and was put through to the day shift supervisor called Adri. She informed me she would only be able to contact the plumbers at 8am and that she would phone just after 8am to let me know what was happening.
8.27am: Adri called me and said the plumbers had been notified and they would be there immediately. She would follow up at 10.30am.
9.57am: I phoned Jaco from the DA and asked him what was happening as no one had been there as yet.
10.26am: The plumbers arrived and informed me they could not get hold of me, only to find out they were given the incorrect cell phone number given by their call centre.
10.48pm: The plumbers fixed the leak and left. One of the plumbers told me the first time they received a call about my problem was at 8am that morning.
It took half an hour to fix a leak that was left unattended to for 16 hours, during which time all that clean water wasted into the ground.
It appears as if the emergency call centre is just a scam to enable people to receive a monthly salary for handing out reference numbers that mean absolutely nothing.
Thank you, Ekurhuleni council, for adding to people’s already stressful lives with your gross inefficiency and devil may care attitude. I wonder how much more water is being wasted on an hourly basis (and not through the lack of the public trying to do its bit).
