Sewage spill floods VHS

Raw sewage has flooded the sports field at Vryheid High School or the fifth time in 13 months and principal, Anton le Roux, is at his wit’s end after months of pleading with the municipality to do something has apparently fallen on deaf ears.

The sewage spill may lead to some of the fixtures in this weekend’s Winter Sports competition between Vryheid and Richards Bay being postponed.

R21 000 that the school spent resurfacing its cricket nets also appears to be a waste after the sewage spill caused extensive damage.

Principal, Anton le Roux, has reached his peak in frustration, complaining that the sewage spills have been an ongoing problem for years and the municipality seems nowhere closer to offering a permanent solution to the problem.

Mr le Roux explained that the cause for the sewage spilling from the school’s manhole appears to be a blockage in the line that runs across the street. However, municipal officials that conducted a site visit after a particularly bad spill earlier this year insisted that the spill was not a municipal issue but a Vryheid High School problem.

“I don’t see how this is possible. We have used our pavilion ablution block twice this year for sports days and the sewage generated on sports days is minimal,” said Mr le Roux. “It is not enough to clog the system. The problem is the blockage that occurs across the street. The blockage causes the sewage to push back and spill from the manhole on the school’s premises. The town’s sewerage system needs to be upgraded. It simply cannot handle the volume it has to take.”

Cllr Harry Heyns said he had raised the sewage spill once again at a water meeting on Monday and was confident that the municipal officials now had the situation under control.