‘Don’t drink water from fire hydrants,’ says Tshwane EMS
“We have been drinking water from that “tap” fire hydrant for the longest time now and none of us have ever had problems with it,” says a Skierlik resident.
Amid water challenges and a cholera outbreak, Tshwane emergency services (EMS) warned residents not to consume water from fire hydrants.
EMS spokesperson Charles Mabaso told Rekord that residents shouldn’t drink or draw water from hydrants.
“Water from fire hydrants is for firefighting purposes only. It is illegal for members of the public to tamper with fire hydrants in any way,” Mabaso added.
This comes after Skierlek residents resorted to drawing their water from the nearby fire hydrant.
Mpho Maphala, a resident in the settlement, said he feels that they were the forgotten ones as they rarely receive services.
“I know we were not properly placed here but we are human beings and we require services. I understand that there are issues such as cholera and all but where do they expect us to get water from?” asked Maphala.
Another resident, Dipuo Molefe said they have never had an issue with the water they drew from the hydrant.
“We have been drinking water from that “tap” fire hydrant for the longest time now and none of us have ever had problems with it.
“I understand that there are issues of the outbreak recently but we have not experienced any sickness here, at least not from the water we drink,” said Molefe.
Residents ask for sanitation for their informal settlement
She pleaded with the municipality to at least instal one or two toilets for them in the area.
A community leader who has been at the forefront of wanting to relocate Skierlik residents, Beauty Motaung said she has hit a stumbling block on the relocation.
“The situation is dire here, and our hands are tied, there is nothing that we can do as the community because we knocked on different doors with no luck.
“The other challenge is that the settlement is forever growing so the little resources seem too small,” Motaung said.
EMS services services their fire hydrants frequently
On how frequently the emergency services inspect these hydrants, Mabaso said his officers inspect them daily.
“Fire hydrant officers inspect hydrants daily in various regions of the city,” explained Mabaso.
He further urged members of the community to report all leaking fire hydrants to the metro water department.
“Members of the public can report damaged or leaking fire hydrants on the Tshwane customer care number, 012 358 9999, or the EMS on 107 toll-free.”
Attempts to get a comment from the municipality were unsuccessful at the time of publication.
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