Bellevue leaks continue to contaminate the environment
For the past few months, residents of Bellevue have rallied together to spruce up their suburb by picking up litter, cutting back overgrown bush, clearing cluttered storm water drains and restoring the parks in the area.
However, they are now becoming increasingly frustrated as the Msunduzi Municipality has not played its part by repairing water and sewage leaks, which have been gushing water and raw sewage since March this year.
Although the problems have been reported by following the correct procedures and protocols, the leaks have not been repaired.
According to Candice Homan, the chairperson of BRRA, the water and sewage leaks have been repeatedly reported to the municipality but very little has been done to rectify the problems.
She said the ward councillor has also been notified about the issues, but has been stonewalled or given the runaround when he has contacted people for dates as to when these issues will be fixed.
Councillor Douglas Roberts of Ward 36, under whose jurisdiction the suburb falls, confirmed that the leaks have been reported to the Msunduzi Municipality.
“The standard reporting is calling the call centre and obtaining a reference number. This number is then placed on a WhatsApp group where the general managers, senior managers and foremen are all members. Some of our groups for different infrastructure issues have excellent response times and really good feedback,” Roberts said.
“Unfortunately, the water group leaves a lot to be desired. The senior managers rarely, if ever, respond, and probably hope that one of the foremen steps up to acknowledge the fault. They have relayed messages that only bursts will be attended to as a matter of urgency, whilst leaks will be attempted as teams become available,” added Roberts.
Roberts said the situation has become totally unacceptable, considering that the number of leaks reported in the ward amounts to huge water losses. He also rejected the municipality’s response that they do not have the required personnel because a visit to the water depot confirms that there are adequate persons employed by the water department.
With regard to the sewage leak, Roberts said the pump (one of many that needed repairs or replacement), was removed and sent to Durban for assessment.
“It has been confirmed that the pump is broken. The municipality has requested that a new pump be delivered as soon as possible. However, nothing has been delivered as yet,” said Roberts.
Roberts also bemoaned the apathy of senior managers in this section of the municipality. He said that senior managers have not returned his calls in the last six months, a situation he finds pathetic.
The ward councillor applauded the work done by the Bellevue community.
“I fully support their efforts and have been assisting where I can. It’s just really sad that rate paying residents have to fork out even more for services that should have been done already. Unfortunately, due to political interference hamstringing progress, this seems to be the only recourse for residents,” Roberts said.
Despite multiple attempts to get comment, the Msunduzi Municipality’s response was not forthcoming at the time of going to print.