THE constant pool of raw sewage outside a Chris Hani Road business has left the owner defeated after exploring avenues to rectify the problem but to no avail.

Craig Chrystal runs his air conditioning business from Bridge Park, where more than 20 mini factories are affected by this and have had to bear the stench of raw sewage flowing through the property daily.

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“For well over a year now, we have had to deal with a constant overflow of sewage that floods into the road right across the entrance to our complex. The municipality has attended to it on possibly three occasions with no success, and we now basically live daily with raw sewage that we have to drive over and walk through every time we enter or leave the building,” he said.

He said it was a health hazard to staff, pedestrians and customers who have also complained about the unsightly spill and the stench, leaving Chrystal in an embarrassing situation.

“In addition, there is an informal settlement directly above us, and the residents walk down an access way and must navigate this access pool daily. I personally witnessed a young girl helping a blind man to try and walk through it. The City has to do something about this,” he said.

A few metres from the spill, hawkers ply their trade selling edible goods. The road is now also taking a toll as a depression has formed from the constant flow of sewage.

“The guards at the entrance have had to dig a small trench to divert the sewage flow off the property or else it would flow into the front driveway. One of the guards wears a buff every day to try and lessen the smell and pollutants he is breathing in. It seems that this has become acceptable for some, but it is unacceptable, and the matter should receive urgent attention from the City,” said Chrystal.

That’s no all, though. The business owner says there are also mounds of rubbish that have built up and never get attended to, adding to the general demise of the area.

“The rubbish build-up was featured in the Northglen News some time ago, and after some attention by the municipality, it has, once again, gone back to what is was before and is steadily worsening. In an already tough economic climate, this just exacerbates the problem and contributes to customers wanting to choose other businesses to deal with,” he said.

Ward 36 councillor Shontel de Boer said she was well aware of the problem and had escalated the matter to the eThekwini Municipality several times but in vain. She said the sewage spill has been ongoing for several years, and the City was well aware of it. What she could not understand was why nothing was being done about it.

“The sewerage line from Briardene needs replacing, and the City knows about this. The spill flows through the informal settlement to the businesses on Chris Hani Road. It is unacceptable and a health hazard to all who frequent the area,” she said.

eThekwini Municipality’s spokesperson Gugu Sisilana said an inspector had established that there were spillages from the ablution facilities in the informal settlement which were caused by illegal connections and overflowing manholes.

“We do, however, continue to urge residents to change their attitude and stop introducing foreign objects into our sewer systems as they are only designed to handle water, human waste and tissue. In most cases, sewer blockages which leads to overflows are caused by hardened oil and fats, rags, disposable nappies and many other foreign objects,” she said.

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