NEWCASTLE – In a time where every single drop of water counts, three weeks is just too long for a water pipe to be leaking.
A resident in Staghorn Crescent, Sandesh Rambally, said he complained about a burst pipe in the street three weeks prior to contacting the media on December 7, with no response from Municipality.
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“I was not sure who to contact about the problem so I called uThukela Water, and the receptionist said she could not help me as it is a municipal problem. I then contacted the Municipality, and the woman I spoke to made the issue seem very insignificant.”
“However, I did eventually get a reference number which apparently aids in the process of adding the pipe onto their schedule.”
Newcastle Municipality Customer Relations Manager, Dr Dumisani Thabethe immediately reacted to the query once notified by the media, and assured residents the pipe would be fixed promptly. He explained complaints like these must be reported to the municipal call centre, where a reference number would be issued and thereafter the repair would be added onto the schedule.
Mr Rambally explained he eventually did get a reference number, but explained it should not take that long to deal with the matter, as Newcastle was facing water shortages.
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Municipal workers started repairing the pipe on December 8. Mr Rambally said they fixed the pipe, but may have damaged electricity cables, because once the leaking pipe was fixed, the electricity in his home stopped working.
