Pietermaritzburg’s leaking taps in the midst of a water shortage

France location has faced a water shortage since last year, and during the worst of it, from March to June, residents were forced to re-use water several times.

Water which had been used for washing clothes was used for flushing toilets. The area started smelling as some of the residents didn’t have water at all. Yet yesterday water was dripping from a standpipe for 20 hours without any action by the municipality.

Residents said they called the water department at Msunduzi municipality but no one took action. Resident Nontobeko Shezi said a pipe had burst.

“We are used to seeing water being wasted and not being attended to for days. This is not the only place where you see water running and taps leaking. Pity, we are a community that faces a water crisis and it is a shock to see water being wasted in this manner. We did call the municipality but their phones rang endlessly without any response. We called the ward councillor and he said he knew about it and he promised to intervene,” said Shezi.

Msunduzi municipality spokesperson Nqobile Madonda said the foreman had been asked to intervene. He said most of the damaged standpipes were broken by members of the community. “In most cases we find that it is not the fault of the system. People break taps and some destroy pipes. That is when the issue starts,” she said.

“We know that the water issue is a national crisis. Our take as the municipality on the matter is urging people to respect the infrastructure and treat it as if it was their own,” said Madonda. Asked how long it takes for their employees to respond to a logged call, she said they responded within a day. “Ideally we would like to respond within 24 hours. However our response times are dependent on the number of burst mains or major faults being attended to and the availability of resources.”

Thornville and Maqonqo areas are also feeling the effects of the water crisis. Thornville residents pay vans to fetch water for them at the nearest police station. Maqonqo residents, who have faced water shortages since 2006, are sharing water with the cows in the nearest river, the Chachacha. Twelve families share water from a single tank and it doesn’t last a day.

In Dambuza, a week doesn’t go by without a water shortage, residents say.

Machibisa also has a problem with broken standpipes. Madonda urged residents to call the municipality if there are water problems in the area.