Ugu under pressure as the coast leaks

RAMSGATE looked like a war zone last weekend.

There were five water breaks in various areas – Lynne Road, Appledore Road, Ulu Drive, Muriel Drive and then the mother of all breaks, in Marine Drive.

Wessel Pretorius, chairman of AfriForum Margate, said that it had received reports that the pressure at some places in Ramsgate was between six and eight bars and this was the reason why there had been 17 breaks within the space of 30 days.

France Zama, spokesman for Ugu District Municipality, said there were indeed a few breaks in Ramsgate, however technicians were deployed on site and these leaks were fixed over the weekend. Total repair of the Marine Drive leak was completed by Tuesday this week.

The municipality is not aware of these allegations, however, pressure technicians have been sent to the area in question to check the pressure levels. The leaks are caused by various things and we cannot assume that these leaks that have since been fixed are as a result of the alleged pressure levels, – France Zama.

Mr Pretorius said another problem was the shoddy work of the contractors hired by Ugu to restore paving and roads after Ugu had repaired the pipes.

“They do not compact properly, leaving the newly repaired pipe vulnerable to another break and it’s costing us, the ratepayers, millions. Also the rubble gets left behind on pavements and then there is a quarrel between Ugu and Hibiscus Coast Municipality (HCM) over whose rubble it is to remove,” he said.

Mr Pretorius said that AfriForum Margate had been in meetings with Ugu on several occasions and had established the ‘Ugu Complaints’ Facebook page to get the public involved and to assist Ugu to identify breaks and act on these reports.

With almost 2 000 members in seven months I think we can proudly say that we have a fair coverage with honest reports from Port Edward up to Scottburgh and as far inland as Harding.

Mr Wessels said that many councillors also view and comment on this page and he personally contacts the top five people at Ugu every time there is a major issue.

He said AfriForum is waiting for Ugu to arrange a date for their next meeting to discuss their ‘AfriForum Wishlist’ submitted at a meeting in March this year.

Then, this week, a water leak on Industrial Road, Marburg was brought to the Herald’s attention by Ward 17 Councillor, Ajith Rajaram. Not only had it been reported to Ugu by many people over the past four months but, worst of all, fresh water was seen flowing down the road. Nothing had been done further to reinstate the road, forcing motorists to drive around and though the mess. Mr Zama said there had been recurring pipe bursts on this pipeline due to the aged infrastructure.

Work is under way by the municipality to replace the 32mm pipeline to ensure a halt to these leaks. Once the pipeline has been replaced, reinstatement work will be undertaken.

The municipality encourages customers to make use of the reporting media made available to report leaks and any water and sanitation related queries. Consumers can contact their ward councillor or log onto www.ugu.gov.za or visit the Facebook page: Ugu District Municipality, Twitter: @Ugu_Water or alternatively contact the call centre at 08000 WATER (92837) or 039 6885830/36 or sms 44751.

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