Burst on Kelly Avenue creating a pond, and Johannesburg Water ‘doesn’t have transport’ to fix it
Ward 134 councillor Devon Steenkamp said that he will continue putting pressure to the entity until the issue is resolved.
Resident Andrew Usher is concerned over an unattended major water leak on Kelly Avenue in Boskruin which he reported at the beginning of the year.
Water is gushing out from the underground pipe and has created a pond next to the house’s fence. Usher explained that he became aware of the issue at the beginning of 2024, and tried the call centre on numerous occasions without any response.
“I have since sent around 16 emails from May 2024 which included a video and a pin drop of the location; I did receive two reference numbers but no responses. I had heard about this through the local Boskruin community group who had also tried to report it. I then went and physically looked at the area and took a video.”
He said that there was no action taken after the two reference numbers were issued, thereafter that the emails were ignored.
“They have issued conservative water restrictions but cannot repair or maintain the infrastructure. We have had numerous water outages over the last year because the infrastructure is in total disrepair. They need to do their job. This type of inefficiency is crippling the Gauteng economy, once the hub of Africa. We will soon be in dire straits with our water situation in South Africa if government water agencies don’t get their house in order.”
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He added that they can survive without electricity for a period of time, but water is a different issue with sanitation, health, and more, and this is not where the country wants to go.
Ward 134 councillor Devon Steenkamp explained that as Johannesburg grapples with a water crisis, it’s deeply concerning to see Johannesburg Water ignoring residents’ repeated pleas about major water bursts.
“It’s not just about the water losses, though those are massive, now we’ve got a full-on mini pond forming. I wouldn’t be surprised if ducks start moving in. The overgrown vegetation around the burst also shows just how long this problem has been left unresolved.”
Steenkamp further stated that since he escalated the issue, he did receive a call from a Johannesburg Water official to help them locate the leak, but they were unable to meet.
“I will continue to escalate the matter until it is resolved. For now, the entity hasn’t been on site. Joburg Water is struggling with transportation issues as well, which is one of the reasons they cannot attend to issues quickly enough.”
Johannesburg Water was sent questions on September 19 but didn’t reply by the time of print. Their reply will be published once made available.
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