Metro backlog blamed as Silverton water leak continues unchecked for weeks
Officials claim both reporting errors and repair backlogs for delays, but residents argue the city fails to treat visible leaks as priorities.
A persistent water leak at the intersection of Simon Vermooten and Pretoria Road, near the Engen garage in Silverton, has been leaking for over a month now, wasting thousands of litres of clean water.
This is despite repeated reports and escalation by residents.
The leak was first reported on July 24, with the City of Tshwane assuring residents it would be resolved by July 31. However, as of August 29, the water continues to flow unchecked.
Metro spokesperson, Lindela Mashigo, explained that the delay was caused by the leak being incorrectly reported.
“It was initially logged as a drainage issue, when in fact it is a leaking bulk water chamber. This meant the complaint went to the wrong unit,” Mashigo said.
He added that the leak was attended to on August 12, but it has since started leaking again and ‘will be attended to’.
Residents, however, said the repeated promises and lack of follow-through are unacceptable, adding that the continuous flow of water is not only wasteful but dangerous. According to them, the metro has promised repairs, but failed to deliver them.
The metro has previously acknowledged a backlog of service requests in Region 6, which includes Silverton.
While the city claims progress in reducing sewer backlogs from 456 to 131 cases, residents argue that the lack of urgent attention to visible leaks erodes public trust.
Ward 41 Councillor, Ben Chapman, criticised the metro for allowing massive water losses to continue unchecked.
He said many leaks in Silverton and Meyerspark have been reported since last year without meaningful action.
“Tshwane fails to prioritise fixing leaks, yet later tells us water reserves are under pressure, while thousands of litres are wasted daily,” Chapman said.
“Even leaks that are marked as priorities take more than 24 hours to repair, and the biggest problem is that the city doesn’t even shut down the water supply while repairs are delayed.”
Chapman said Tshwane is not keeping to its promises of a 24-48 turnaround time.
He continued, “Instead, there are water leaks that date back to July, November, and May this year, which in the eyes of Tshwane seem not to be priorities, but in reality, they are wasting a lot of water.
“According to residents, there’s another leak in Grace Avenue, which was reported in 2024. However, this has still not been attended to, and the water has caused some erosion to the sidewalk, due to prolonged leaking.”
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