KARIEGA – Flooding yards, damaging roads, and washing thousands of litres of clean drinking water down the drain – this is the daily reality for Van Riebeeck Hoogte residents who have watched a water leak wreak havoc on their neighbourhood for over a year, despite reporting the incident.
A resident living in front of the leak, Marlon Booysen shared with UD Express that this issue is affecting the residents living nearby. “This is clean drinking water flowing into the drain like this. Every time we complain about it, we are told that the water comes from the Fairbridge Heights reservoir. My question is, why doesn’t the municipality make a plan to prevent the waste?”
He added, “It is unfortunate that this has not been addressed for so long. The water is creating potholes in the street; however, I feel the most for the residents living in front of the water leak. When it is raining, the rainwater as well as the water leak flood the street, which then flows into the neighbours’ yards, sometimes into their homes. It is a massive problem that does not seem to get any municipal attention. How many litres of water must be wasted in order for the municipality to act?”
In response to the situation, the municipal spokesperson, Sithembiso Soyaya, said that the municipality acknowledges ongoing public concerns regarding unresolved water leaks and appreciates continued community engagement on these matters.
“The municipality remains focused on prioritising serious water leaks, those that pose an immediate risk to public health, safety, or result in significant water loss, within a 24-hour response window. However, it is important to note the operational context in which this work takes place. Our teams are currently managing a substantial backlog of existing leaks, while also responding to a high number of new reports received daily across the metro. This has placed considerable pressure on available technical resources and contractors,” he said.
Soyaya added that the municipality is working closely with appointed service providers to ensure that reported leaks are logged, assessed, and responded to according to severity. “In cases where delays have occurred, a full review is conducted to determine the cause and prevent recurrence.
“In situations where leaks may involve potable water or are linked to major supply infrastructure such as reservoirs, further technical assessments are initiated to determine the volume of water loss and any potential impact on local supply reliability. Where access to the affected infrastructure is hampered by conditions such as waterlogged ground or overgrown vegetation, we evaluate alternative methods or equipment needed to carry out the work safely and effectively.”
He further added that where leaks are left unattended over time, the municipality acknowledges the risk of secondary impacts, such as road surface damage or soil erosion. “Where applicable, joint inspections are arranged between water and roads departments to ensure coordinated repairs and to limit long-term infrastructure costs.”
Soyaya said, “Dedicated response teams are deployed to sites where urgent attention is required, and every effort is made to prioritise issues in a way that balances technical feasibility, urgency, and fairness across all affected areas. Residents will be kept informed wherever possible as repair plans are finalised and implemented.
“While we have service protocols and response guidelines in place, we acknowledge that there is always room for improvement. Given the scale of leaks being reported metro-wide, our teams, alongside our contractors, are doing the best we can within the current resource constraints. “We are actively working to improve internal coordination, reduce backlogs, and ensure consistent service delivery to all communities,” he concluded.
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