Ugu offers fresh hope for the thirsty

It has been a real struggle for a large number of South Coasters who have had to live with little or no water, in some cases for more than a month.

However, Ugu District Municipality has extended a lifeline to these desperate communities – in the form of both a substantial budget allocation for the maintenance of ageing infrastructure for the 2019/20 financial year and a concerted effort to repair the Umthamvuna pump station.

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Ugu spokesman France Zama announced yesterday (Wednesday) that the Umthamvuna plant was currently producing water at full capacity.

Positive signs emerged on Tuesday this week, when water supply schemes began to pick up and most areas started receiving water.

The Port Edward reservoir was 70 percent full by midday on Tuesday, with technicians confirming full supply had been restored to Lower and Upper Banners Rest, Leisure Bay, Bromsfield, Glenmore, Palm Beach, Trafalgar, San Lameer, Southbroom, KwaNzimakwe, Breamer, Goqoza and Shobamdlazi.

“While the recovery process of the Umthamvuna system is under way, high lying areas of Ndumezulu will still be supplied via static tanks,” said Mr Zama.

“We have already started pumping to Izingolweni and KwaXolo and these systems are picking up. Full supply is expected soon.”

Mr Zama said indications were that full supply would be restored to all areas by the end of the week.

The news comes not a moment too soon for those whose daily lives were disrupted by the extended lack of water.

For the Dunmore family of Leisure Bay, the past few weeks have been a nightmare.

Their eldest daughter couldn’t go to school on Monday this week as she had no clean clothes.

Without water since May 26, the family had even resorted to collecting murky water from a nearby stream.

And being forced to buy water to adequately care for for their children, aged three and six, has put the family under financial pressure.

Invaluable assistance to people most in need has been rendered by several ‘angels’ including Gift of the Givers and the Port Edward Ratepayers’ and Residents’ Association – under the guidance of chairman Douglas Powell and vice chairman, Peter Brereton – which have been working tirelessly around the clock, delivering water to the frail and disabled.

The association also delivered ten 260-litre water tanks to the most vulnerable in the affected areas, both in Port Edward and surrounds..

“Despite the lack of communication from Ugu, we did had a good working relationship with its team and the community of Leisure Bay,” said Mr Brereton.

“Port Edward now has 70 000 litres of standby water, thanks to a great team effort.”

Phillip Lennon, who lives in Leisure Bay, returned from holiday last Sunday to discover his community trying to cope without water.

Investigations led him to the reservoirs in Shad Road and Bristol Road, which he discovered were both completely empty.

“When I lifted the lid and looked inside I could see mud at the bottom of the Shad Road reservoir, while the Bristol Road reservoir had about three centimetres of water at the bottom,” he said.

The Herald paid a visit to the reservoirs with Mr Lennon on Monday this week.

Worryingly, the reservoirs, which should be locked, were open and easy to access.

In a surprise twist, on Tuesday evening Mr Lennon was notified by an Ugu plumber that someone had attempted to ‘help’ by opening the valve at the Bristol Road reservoir but had in fact closed the valve instead, causing the reservoir to empty.

The reservoir could not refill due to the closed valve.

“While I was standing on the top of the reservoir with the plumber, water started flowing in fast and furiously. Lesson learnt – don’t take matters into your own hands as this can cost the community dearly. I think it was done out of pure desperation and not with malicious intent,” he said.

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