Running sewer damages Vorna Valley resident’s swimming pool
Stuart Hall, a Vorna Valley resident for 27 years, says the manhole drainage sewer that is outside his property floods his yard whenever it is blocked and he opted to put up sand-bags to redirect water.
A constant sewerage blockage in Vorna Valley has left one property owner irate at Joburg Water.
Stuart Hall, a Vorna Valley resident for 27 years, claimed the sewage from a manhole on the corner of his property, floods his yard whenever it is blocked.
He said this started in May 2022 and it was fixed by Joburg Water but six days later, it became blocked again and that’s when the sewage damaged his swimming pool pump and filter.
Hall said after his insurance rejected his claim for the damages, he went to the Ombudsman.
“I fought these people for six months only to be told eventually it was not a natural disaster and therefore ‘have a nice day’.
“I then submitted a claim to the Joburg municipality on December 9, 2022, and again on January 18 along with follow-up emails but never heard a word back, not even acknowledgement of receipt,” he alleged.
On May 7 this year, he said his entire property was flooded by sewage, and he and his neighbour placed sandbags around the manhole in an attempt to redirect the flow.
He accused Joburg Water of taking about four days to come to fix it despite escalating the matter at least twice a day.
In response, Joburg Water spokesperson Nombuso Shabaala said the sewer blockage was reported on May 9 at 22:00, and a call was logged on the same day. “Johannesburg Water responded to the call the next day, on May 10 around 14:00. This response time is reasonable and within the entity’s stipulated turnaround times, which is that sewer blockages should be responded to within 24 hours,” added Shabalala.
She said the team cleared the blockage by removing rags from the pipe.
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