BETHAL – While thousands of liters of water go to waste in Simon Street, there seems to be no urgency when it comes to fixing a six-week-old leak.
Although a trench had been dug open, all that remains is a pool of water, a leaning lamp post and a wall that is on the verge of collapse, this according to residents and images received.
“It is the third time this pipe has burst,” said Ms Michelle Brophy, tenant at the complex.
She said when they had returned from holiday both their garden and a neighbour’s garden was completely flooded.
According to Ms Brophy, her neighbour reported it to the municipality and received a reference number.
She said a front-end loader was sent and dug up the ground, and just left it like that.
“The water is going underneath our houses and pavement. There is a continuous smell of algae, the stench is bad.
“There are people in Bethal sitting without water, yet this is clean water that is being wasted,” said an angry Ms Brophy.
She said the dampness has even begun to damage walls where paint is now peeling off and that all the walls around the house are continuously wet.
“The longer they are taking to fix this, the more water is being wasted,” said Ms Brophy. Concerns are that the water leak is also causing damage to the boundary wall and a street light lamp post is now tilting and fiber wires are exposed.
It is unsure who is responsible for the repair of the leak as Govan Mbeki Municipality claimed the leak is coming from the owners side of the property.
“The water leak seemed to be coming from the owner’s yard,” said Mr Donald Green, acting head of communications for GMM.
He said it is the owner’s responsibility to fix the leak, however their team will further investigate to ascertain the root cause of the problem.
“We do not work beyond the meter,” said Mr Green.
