Nombuso Shabalala, Joburg Water spokesperson confirmed that the entity has finally fixed the old water leak on Oak Avenue in Ferndale.
The leak is from August or September 2023 and was repaired back then but clean water was still coming from underground after Joburg Water fixed the leak.
The chairman of the Ferndale Ridge Residents Group, Pierre van Wyk explained that residents logged the matter several times with no result.
“The matter has been escalated many times by councillor Nicole van Dyk yet JHB Water did nothing to repair it properly. Carte Blanche ran their story on such issues in Joburg and then suddenly this open hole was filled, yet the leak continues as it was never fixed properly.”
He added that it is extremely frustrating seeing fresh water going to waste when there are water restrictions and outages lasting days.
“It also has an added environmental impact as it takes chemicals and energy to purify water and pump it from the Vaal. Wasted water is adding to global warming in that sense, which is something we can least afford.”
Shabalala stated that they became aware of the situation after many calls were logged by residents.
A team was deployed to the site for repairs and upon inspection, they discovered there was a water pipe leak that was caused by tree roots. At the site, the water pipes underground are situated below a huge tree.
“Over time, the roots of the tree grew through the concrete and grew around the water supply lines, causing the water pipes to slowly crack, resulting in the leaking. Tree roots can displace water pipes, causing them to burst. Before repairs could begin, Johannesburg Water’s team had to first request that City Parks and Zoo cut down the tree, which they did; however, it was a struggle because of the size of the tree.”
She added that the Johannesburg Water team eventually managed to remove the tree and roots from underground and only then could they begin with repairs. Which were eventually completed.
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