Frustration over water interruptions in Empangeni
'The most frustrating part is not knowing what is happening and how to plan around not having water,' a resident said.
IN scenes reminiscent of Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s ‘The Rime of the Ancient Mariner,’ Empangeni residents experienced two days of ‘water, water everywhere, but not a drop to drink’.
While the poet was referring to a thirsty sailor in the midst of an ocean of salt water, the townsfolk watched as rain bucketed down outside but the taps stayed dry all Sunday and again on Monday.
One resident on Partridge Road, Empangeni said she had been without water since 5pm on Sunday.
‘When they put out the notice to say there will be water interruptions due to a major pipe burst, we thought we would at least have water by the evening.
‘When it still did not return, we put our hopes on waking up to running taps,’ she said.
By Monday morning however, the water had not be restored in some parts of Empangeni.
‘I was still not able to take a shower and go to work because there was no water,’ she added.
Another resident, who lives on Eagle Drive, expressed frustration over the lack of communication from the municipality.
‘We appreciated that they informed us of the burst pipe but after that initial announcement, there were no further updates apart from what we were receiving from our neighbourhood watch groups.
‘We had water up until midday on Sunday but then the taps went dry. Then we were told the problem had been fixed and they were working on filling up the reservoirs,’ she said.
She said her house was still without water at noon on Monday.
‘The most frustrating part is not knowing what is happening and how to plan around not having water,’ the resident said.
City of uMhlathuze spokesperson, Mdu Ncalane said the burst pipe had been fixed on Sunday.
‘The technical team had been busy scouring the pipes on Monday, causing some delays in the return of water to some areas,’ he said.
On Monday afternoon, the municipality said water would be fully restored by the end of the day.
However, while water was restored to some areas on Monday afternoon, houses on Flamingo Avenue, Neil Armstrong Drive, Crane place and Weaver Wing among others, are still without water.
