Fear and uncertainty is rife.

Mountains of trash line the streets.

Pillars of toxic smoke billowing from smoldering heaps of rubbish poisoning homes in Kanonkop and Dennesig.

Large parts of town have been without water for the third day today, with strikers having destroyed hundreds of valves on the network for the umpteenth time.

Kilometers of electricity cables had already been cut, leaving large portions of town in the dark, allowing striking employees to cause further damage unseen.

Also read: Electricity and water sabotage alleged in ongoing municipal strike

Mpumalanga’s flagship municipality, one of South Africa’s most financially stable and best managed local authorities, will need years to recover from the destruction striking employees have left in their wake.

From kykNET Kwêla’s Town of the Year, to warzone of note – Middelburg has lost its reputation as pillar of stability, with striking employees pelting motorists with rocks, and destroying essential infrastructure.

The humanitarian crisis facing the town, where the payment rate for services are at 98%, will eclipse the ruin caused by the recent looting and public unrest in KZN and other metros.

The town has been reeling since the strike commenced on September 19.

Municipal Manager, Advocate Bheki Khenisa, issued a directive on Wednesday for striking employees to return to work within 48 hours, or be summarily dismissed.

Striking municipal employees are demanding massive salary increases on the back of a 2017 report endorsing a municipal upgrade from level 4 to level 5. Apart from the salary upgrade, they’re also demanding backpay on increases for 36 months.

The workforce initially demanded a level 6 upgrade, but settled for a level 5 raise, during negotiations with the municipality, on condition that October salaries be paid in return for a year’s backpay forfeiture.

Strikers have been paid in full for October, but refuse to return to work despite a court interdict and Salga instructing the municipality to halt further negotiations.

Salga further instructed the municipality to enforce the interdict, halt all salary payments, and to institute disciplinary procedures against striking employees.

Rivers of sewage have caused a massive sink hole in Walter Sisulu Street, close to the municipal magasyn, where striking employees gather each day to drink and braai.

Mountains of rubbish is still accumulating throughout town, and waste transfer stations have now been closed down, with only the main landfill site open to residents.

Taps are dry again, following a similar shortage in Kanonkop and Dennesig two weeks ago, where residents had to survive without water for a full week, depending on neighbours with boreholes for survival.

Also read: Water crisis to intensify after striking workers destroy main outlet valve

The town’s water network has basically imploded with pipe bursts occurring regularly due to ongoing sabotage of vales and pipelines.

The entire town is besieged with electricity outages due to sabotage of cables and substations.

Two water tankers organized for hundreds of children attending the Mpumalanga sporting play-offs for basketball, soccer, rugby, tennis, volleyball, chess and others two weeks ago, were emptied by striking employees.

Also read: Municipal strikers empty water tankers meant for school sports provincial playoffs

Last week Friday, a man died in a horrific explosion and fire at a supermarket in the CBD, after striking Middelburg fire and rescue marshals refused to attend, spurring eMalahleni and Columbus Stainless fire teams to respond.

The fire brigade is also not responding to accidents or other emergencies.

Also read: Under-staffed STLM fire fighters get aid from Columbus Stainless

Both Mpumalanga Premier Refilwe Mtshweni-Tsipane and Deputy President David Mabuza failed to broker an agreement ahead of Monday’s local government poll where the ANC lost 12 council seats, and retaining only 21 out of 58.

It has been two full months since residents last saw a traffic officer in uniform, while licensing services had also been suspended.

Contractors face increasing perils while attending to callouts with strikers threatening them and their families.

Residents with boreholes, assisting hundreds of families with potable water, are also being targeted with dodgy drive-by’s in front of their homes.

Death threats on Advocate Khenisa have also skyrocketed with striking employees refusing to return to work by Monday.

The apocalyptic scenes are only set to worsen with faceless instigators, calling themselves the Greater Middelburg Concerned Residents, calling for violence and the burning of Middelburg, if employees are dismissed.

Striking employees are also demanding charges to be dropped against employees arrested for damage to essential infrastructure.

The ANC got a deserved lashing at Monday’s polls, after throwing Advocate Khenisa to the wolves by agreeing to striker’s demands in principle, and referring the matter to Salga and the Central Bargaining Council for guidance.

Also read: Council toothless against municipal saboteurs, strike to continue indefinitely

Despite immense pressure to buckle, Advocate Khenisa remains defiant, but isolated.

More than R170 million will have to be added to the budget to accommodate striker’s demands, while residents are now threatening non-payment for services in the ongoing turmoil.

The SAPS have done nothing about the public drinking at the magasyn, and residents are now calling for the SANDF to be deployed.