TAKE NOTE: Large underground sinkhole in Durban North
The local ward councillor has advised residents to report issues to the municipality immediately.
A DECEPTIVELY ‘small’ sinkhole has developed near the intersection of Beachway Street and Hoylake Drive, in Durban North. The sinkhole in Hoylake Drive, has been filled with a tree branch. Red plastic bags were placed on the branch to warn motorists of the hole, which has widened beneath the tarmac into a much larger sinkhole.
Ward councillor for Durban North, Shaun Ryley said he noticed it on Monday, 20 February, and has already reported it to the municipality.
He said, “Potholes are exacerbated when we have heavy rains like we’ve been having over the past couple of days. New potholes can appear or old ones can get worse and it makes it difficult for the Roads Department to repair them in this sort of weather and they have to wait for the weather to clear up before they can actually do the repair work. What that does is it causes a bit of a backlog on the system because obviously they have quite a few more to deal with.”
Ryley went on to say motorists need to be vigilant of potholes developing on roads, particularly following heavy showers. He advised the public to immediately report them to the city’s engineering unit and get a reference number for the issue. “If nothing is done within two weeks, residents can get a hold of me so that I can escalate it to one of the senior managers in the department,” Ryley said.
Durban experienced several days of persistent rainfall during the past week.
Contact details for the municipal department are 080 131 3013, or eservices@durban.gov.za. Shaun Ryley can be contacted on 083 974 3500 or ward36@shaunryley.com.
