Durban — As 2023 reaches its conclusion and families plan their vacations, Ward 18 residents experienced the same old service delivery problems as they woke up to dry taps.
This occurred on Thursday after a pipe burst at the Mount Moriah Reservoir. As a result, areas in the ward – including Pinetown and surrounding areas – were affected.
It is claimed that the area has not had water since Monday and that with elections around the corner in 2024, the possibility of foul play and sabotage has been reported.
It seems any last-ditch efforts to gain political advantage might be at play.
The eThekwini Municipality notified the community that there would be an interruption of water supply in order to fix the pipe.
The City said 600mm of the pipe needed repairing.
The Mount Moriah Reservoir supplies water to the inner-west region.
The municipality said the work was under way.
“Thereafter, the reservoir outlet will be opened. Pinetown and surrounding areas will be the first to receive water, while other areas such as Westmead, Tshelimnyama and Nagina will start receiving water when their downstream reservoirs reach sufficient water levels.”
The municipality apologised for the inconvenience and asked for residents to be patient as their teams continued working round-the-clock to restore the water supply.
Affected areas include Pinetown CBD, Cowies Hill, Ashley, Nazareth, Westmead Industrial, Nagina, Sarnia, Farningham Ridge, New Germany, Dawncliffe, Mpola and Tshelimnyama.
Last week, opposition parties in eThekwini called on Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs (Cogta) MEC Bongi Sithole to intervene as the City battled the water crisis.
At that time, the IFP said it was willing to go to court if need be to place the department under administration.
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Daily News