CBD – The dead at the Hardwick Street Cemetery probably do not rest easy.
Remnants of hasty fires and shattered alcohol bottles lie within metres of where pedestrians have walked a path between the headstones and burial plots.
Read: Spooky – Sculptures haunt cemetery
Used condoms are as abundant as the grave sites.
The sordid state of the cemetery speaks volumes why many residents no longer pay respects to loved ones interred there.
Sadly, this means many grave sites are in a poor state.
“I visited the cemetery this week and was disgusted at how many bottles and condom wrappers lie close to the gravestones,” commented a resident, who declined to be named.
Many matters related to the state of the Hardwick Street Cemetery were communicated to the municipality at the end of 2016, in particular overgrowth.
Head of Parks, Recreation and Cleansing, Vish Govender responded last week.
He said the cemetery was cleaned prior to the closing of the municipal offices in the final week of December.
“The issue which we have requested funding for is the vagrants who litter the cemetery and once funding is secured, we will be able to provide a long-term solution.”
This solution is likely the fencing-off of the cemetery, the only solution Mr Govender sees as definitive from as far back as June 2015.
A more temporary fix saw municipal workers tackle the cemetery with grass trimmers on Tuesday.
“Furthermore, the recent rains have made our maintenance schedule fall slightly behind, and we are working around the clock to keep up with overgrown grass.”
Also read: Trouble looms at Roy Point Cemetery
