Crisis averted: Ballito works

‘Tis the week before Christmas, and all through the town not a road is blocked, traffic congestion is down, electricity is on and there is hope that water will be in the taps.

Many potentially disasterous issues have been resolved and Ballito is ready for a jam-packed festive season.

During the upgrade of the P445, the Ballito entrance road, a holiday traffic crisis of gigantic proportions was averted through last-minute team work between contractors and the municipality.

A huge public outcry over the traffic gridlock at the top of Ballito sparked an emergency meeting that brought together all the main role players.

Contractors and engineers vowed to redouble efforts to have four lanes open by mid-December and pointsmen eased traffic through the intersections.

The whole town breathed a sigh of relief when on D-day the promised four lanes were opened.

“The construction company and everybody involved deserve a big pat on the back. They have literally saved Christmas for thousands of people,” commented resident Craig Fletcher via Facebook.

“A big thank you to everyone involved for a good job despite all the moaning and groaning while you were busy trying to fix the roads we were all using. Thank you to the traffic police for all the directions and helping traffic flow,” said Sergio Messi.

Escalating water restrictions as the level of the Hazelmere dam steadily dropped to the critical 40 percent level sent panic waves, as people feared a repeat of the 2011 dry summer.

Sembcorp Siza Water implemented stage two water restrictions in the greater Ballito area and minimum fines of R3000 were issued to transgressors.

The KwaDukuza fire department was one of the first to receive a fine.

In an effort to cut back further, restrictions eventually escalated to stage four, with water being turned off between 9.00 pm and 5.00 am.

So far, water interruptions have not been as bad as feared and it looks like Ballito will have a wet December after all.

With Eskom announcing a low risk for load shedding until mid January, the Willard beach lifeguard tower being given a fresh coat of paint this week and Willard beach toilets having been unlocked, Ballito is set for a great festive season.

Continuous booze blocks can be expected over the next two weeks and people should remember to always keep their driver’s licences with them in the car.