Sewer-shedding slams Standerton
STANDERTON – The community of Standerton is suffering under a different kind of ‘load shedding’ – sewage. Streets are flooded with raw sewage in a part of every community. The places being hit the worst is in Extension 6 and in an open veld in Nelson Mandela Drive adjacent to the Mosque.
Two manholes in Handel Street were also bursting out of their seams and flooded the area with raw sewage. On Friday, last week, the pump station in Johann Street was flooded with sewage leaving even the pump itself submerged in sewage. All of these leaks found their way into the Vaal River.
The cause of the crisis is that the main pump station in Muller Street broke down causing blockages to the main system. Municipal workers are running from pillar to post to try and attent the different complaints, but the amount of complaints are too much to handle. Improper equipment and staff shortages are also crippling the efficiency of the workers.
Besides the sewage dilemma, potable water is also channeling through the streets. Water leaks are rife in all parts of Standerton and Sakhile.
A water leak on the pavement of a resident in Meyerville compelled him to take things into his own hands. The leak has been reported to the Municipality since May and nothing has been done. To avoid his home from being flooded, Mr Sheppard channeled the water leak underground through a gutter to flow into George Street. The retaining water problem is now fixed, but the water leak still continues to flow into George Street where it is likely to cause potholes. Councillor Rosier de Ville says the main reason for this is that the ANC-led Municipality did no maintenance or upgrades on the system. “It was a ticking time bomb about to happen, one could only expect this to have happened because there is no political will from the leaders in the Municipality. The only way that we are going to solve this problem is to get rid of the people who are not competent to hold office,” he stated. The Chairperson of the AfriForum’s Standerton branch, Mr Hillel Coetzer, visited some of the scenes and criminal charges were opened against the Municipal Manager of Lekwa. Records show that this is going to be a persistent problem due to the fact that R140 million is needed to upgrade the sewer treatment plant. Money that Lekwa Local Municipality definitely does not have.