Storm water grids in Poortsig Avenue in Bergtuin that are continually stolen have forced residents to take matters into their own hands by placing tree stumps in the holes where the grids should be. According to Ward Councillor Adriana Randall, she has received numerous complaints about the theft. It has created unnecessary hassle for residents and has also led to residents damaging their vehicles when they attempt to drive in or out of their driveways.
“I understand the Tshwane metro’s dilemma with regard to the theft of the grids, but for them to take three months to replace the grids is inexcusable,” Randall said.
She said the procrastination is poor service delivery and that street lights, water leaks and power outages have never been such a problem for residents as in the last few months. “I am thankful that the metro installed the new grids in Poortsig Avenue a few years ago, but to battle to have stolen grids replaced is disappointing to say the least,” she said.
Selby Bokaba, spokesperson for the metro, said that the contractor from the asset management division under the Roads and Stormwater Department in Region 3 visited the site and ordered the replacement of the grids. He said the material would be delivered by early December.
“The fact that the grids were not immediately replaced is owed to the fact that the supplier does not have that specific size on the shelf. We are going to use cast-iron steel. The supplier has to cut the grids to the specific size ordered. It should be noted that the missing grids were stolen, so as a result, whatever we are replacing with should make it difficult for the criminals to steal,” Bokaba said.
He added that some residents have already welded the grids to the ground, which will make maintenance in the future impossible.
“To prevent theft, we fix the grids to the frames with nuts and bolts and sometimes we weld them, but this creates a problem when we need to remove them for cleaning purposes. The cost of replacing a grid varies substantially according to the type and size,” he said.
