Sewage leaks stop Ferndale hike

The BryanFern Residents Association was unable to hold their annual spruit hike due to ongoing sewage leakage problems at the Ferndale Spruit.

Carmella Hendrikz and Eirini Kalimeri from the BryanFern Residents Association discussed the issue with Randburg Sun at the 1st Randburg Scouts group community fun day on Saturday 27 January.

“At the moment, we are dealing with a lot of sewage leaks into the Ferndale Spruit, so we are informing members of the community about the problem and how they can do their part to help,” said Hendrikz.

The residents’ association usually holds an annual community fun hike at the spruit to encourage environmental consciousness, physical well-being, and community togetherness.

The unsanitary and dismal smell caused by the sewage leaks forced the residents association to make other plans this year.

Kalimeri said that she had been working on this problem since 16 October 2017.

“The roots of trees in the spruit have blocked sewage drains, and this causes a bigger problem further up the pipelines… The city has been remarkable at attending to the problem, however when one problem is fixed, another occurs soon after. There are four leaks in total, the biggest being in Cork Street,” said Kalimeri.

She suggested that the problem is caused by the age of the pipes and that they have requested new ones to be fitted, with better protection.

“Part of the reason why we are here today, and why we have invited our ward councillor, is to inform people that we have reported the problem numerous times, and we are making an effort to fix it. We hope that the city can fix problems like these so that everyone can make use of the spruit again,” Hendrikz added.

Kalimeri said she is working tirelessly with the city to solve the problems of the sewage leaks so that the residents’ association, scouts and others can enjoy the spruit once again.

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