Goodwood, Tygerdal and Glenwood residents say they have waited more than a year for the City to fix a broken sewer pump.
Residents between Gerwel Drive and Townsend Street say they have been living with raw sewage in their streets since October last year and it has left a foul stench hanging over the neighbourhood. It’s a health hazard especially to children and the elderly who visit the park in Wilger Crescent, they say.
In October last year, Renier van der Schyff and Marci Finlayson of Umthi Close and Brenda Cloete and Jas Visser of Cycad Crescent logged complaints about overflowing sewers.Â
Receiving no feedback, they went to the Goodwood Residents and Ratepayers Association. Committee member James Ellis, who lives in Tygerdal, took up the cause. He said C3s were logged with the City and numerous phone calls made, but nothing was done. Mr Ellis called the mayor’s office and had a conversation with Dan Plato who, he said, told him that all procurement processes would go ahead to have the pumps replaced or fixed.
On Thursday August 27, the sewer pump broke again, spewing raw sewage into the streets. Mr Ellis said he had spoken to mayoral committee member for water and waste, Xanthea Limberg, the next day. She had expressed concern and had asked him to email her, which he had done.
On Thursday September 10, Ms Limberg’s office notified him that the City had installed a mobile pump on the same day that the second spill had been reported. The mobile pump would remain in the pump station until a new pump had been installed. That was expected to happen by the end of October.
Mr Ellis said ward councillor Cecile Janse van Rensburg and sub-council manager Ardela van Niekerk had organised for the streets to be sanitised.
Ms Limberg told Northern News there had been two sewer pump failures in the area over the past year, the latest on Thursday August 27. She added that there had also been more than 30 blockages in the pipe caused by residents flushing rags, newspaper, nappies, nappy wipes, plastic packets, earbuds, tampons or sanitary pads down their toilets.Â
These should not be flushed down the toilet but rather wrapped and thrown in the bin.
The City planned to assess the conditions of all its pump stations – there are close to 500 – by the end of June next year, Ms Limberg said.Â
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