FOR four weeks, municipal employees have been living in fear, with a business forum sending death threats to anyone caught providing essential services to the Durban community.

“From our side, nothing is being done and we are not getting paid unless we risk our lives and go out and work,” said an anonymous employee.

He said they were told, “If we catch you working, we will kill you.”

There have even been reports of some employees working under the supervision of armed guards.

As a result, many areas across Durban have been experiencing extreme service interruptions and this has even spilled over into the Durban North and uMhlanga areas. For the most part, electricity and water departments have been affected.

However, the eThekwini Municipality has assured their workers and the public that the issue has been resolved.

“This follows a series of meetings between city leadership and aggrieved parties to reach an amicable solution to end the service disruption. Two weeks ago, the city filed a court interdict prohibiting the intimidation, harassment and assault of municipal employees and contractors,” the city said in a statement yesterday.

Councillors, Shaun Ryley and Heinz de Boer, confirmed that there have been power outages north of Durban.

What’s more, Ryley said there had been a number of complaints regarding potholes and sinkholes that have made the roads dangerous.

“In my ward, there have been a number of outages. In Rosehill, the residents experienced a power outage for three days. Broadway experienced a power outage for six hours. In the city, the residents experienced power outages for a number of days,” he said.

According to the statement, the city has now begun to address the backlog in service delivery.

“Areas which have been without water and electricity will be prioritised. Employees and contractors most affected by the threats are under constant support by our security agencies,” it read.