A Durbanville Hills couple say they are being plagued by rats and raw sewage on their doorstep as they battle to have a broken City sewer pipe fixed.
Sharon Benton said they had reported the problems to the City of Cape Town before they moved into the house in January but it had left them in the lurch.
The couple started renovating soon after taking transfer in December. They found their sewerage blocked when they laid new pipes.
They hired a plumber to unblock the system, but then discovered the pipe connecting them to the municipal sewer was broken.
Ms Benton said the City had sent three units to their home, each one “passing the buck”, saying it was not their department. The City staff, she said, had got as far as digging up the pavement but that had been about it.
Sewage now empties onto the pavement in front of the house.
“All our waste is now basically just lying in front of our home. The smell is unbearable,” said Ms Benton.
And rats have the run of the property. When Northern News visited on Friday February 23, they could be seen running through the pipes and onto neighbouring properties.
“It can’t just be left like this, they don’t seem to understand the urgency of the situation,” she said.
The Bentons had hoped to finish their renovations already and clear up the sidewalk but they have been unable to do so.
The City had not responded to questions by the time of going to print.