Business fined for fixing collapsed road
A local company was fined for fixing a road that JRA says it does not have budget to fix.
Business owners are up in arms over Johannesburg Roads Agency’s inability to repair Mijn Street in Roodepoort after the road surface gave way last month, revealing an expansive tunnel dug by zama zamas (illegal miners). The road has remained closed since.
The tunnel runs from the mine dump on Mijn Street, under the pavement to the factory of well-known scrap metal dealer Horn Trading, situated on the corner of Mijn and Van Wyk Streets.
Another branch of the tunnel runs under the busy Van Wyk Street, emerging in the veld not far from the street where illegal miners load gold-bearing material neatly into bags and onto vehicles.
According to Horn Trading’s manager Hettie du Plessis, JRA confirmed they do not have the budget available for the repair of Mijn Street.
“Our revenue is down by more than 50% because we are unable to effectively serve our customers,” Du Plessis said.
• Read the initial article here: It’s not a pothole, it’s a (zama zama) tunnel!
“The closed section of road is right in front of our entrance. Our customers have to drive around the block and carry their scrap metal much farther to be weighed. Most just opt to go elsewhere, which puts us in a very difficult position.”
Out of desperation, the company decided to do something about the situation themselves and according to Du Plessis, they made sure to try and make repairs to the road correctly.
“We hired machinery and opened up the tunnel where it crosses the road to ascertain how extensive the damage is,” she said.
“This is when we realised the tunnel even goes under the factory. We bought rubble and sand and filled in the tunnel. We were about to start pouring cement when JMPD showed up and stopped us.
“They called JRA and a representative from the entity arrived shortly after, threatening that we would be arrested for tampering with their infrastructure.
“In the end, we received a R15 000 fine and were ordered to cover the hole, which we did on Saturday, December 7.
“When I arrived for work on Monday morning, another two holes had been dug from underneath and the tunnels had been reopened.
“We are closing for the December holidays. I don’t even want to imagine what we will come back to if these zama zamas are not stopped.”
The Roodepoort Record sent questions about the repair of Mijn Street and the danger of collapse in Van Wyk Street to JRA and will publish their response when received.
