A Macassar community activist expressed his dismay at the City of Cape Town’s delayed response to a drain blockage, which posed a serious health hazard to the New Macassar Village community for weeks on end, approximately a month, before the problem was finally resolved.
Christiaan Stewart turned to DistrictMail & Helderberg Gazette concerning a stormwater pipe in Magdeline Gila Road which was left so severely blocked that sections of the road became flooded following rains on Wednesday 28 February.
Residents reported the issue to council following havoc wreaked by the flooding incident.
“We started to worry when the water turned green and a foul stench emanated from the stagnant water,” Stewart said.
“I personally know of community members who actually contracted diarrhoea. Children had to walk past this reeking water every day to school and back; it was a big problem and we waited and waited for the City to come out and fix it.”
Ward 109 councillor Peter Helfrich confirmed the City had eventually sent teams out to address the blockage issue last Friday (15 March), nearly three weeks after the matter had been reported via the correct City channels with references numbers to boot.
“It is disheartening to report our efforts have been consistently impeded by a surge in deliberate illegal dumping into these gullies,” he said.
“Our teams on the ground have highlighted a concerning trend of residents intentionally disposing of rubble into the stormwater gullies, not only within Macassar Village but also across various areas in the ward. This recurring behaviour has escalated to such an extent that our teams find themselves revisiting the same locations on an almost weekly basis.”
Helfrich said the obstruction of stormwater infrastructure not only disrupts essential services, but also poses challenges in maintaining the integrity of the drainage systems.
Stewart disagreed, saying an easy solution for the problem is to fit a metal sift over the openings of the drains, which will cause less rubble to land up in the drains.
Helfrich said in cases such as the one in Magdeline Gila Road the water accumulation occurs even in the absence of rainfall due to blocked drains, which exacerbate flooding issues.
“It is crucial to emphasise this problem stems from the actions of a minority,” he said, “yet its impact resonates with thousands of law-abiding residents.
“Such disregard for municipal infrastructure and other residents is unacceptable. It is also unacceptable that the City is expected to redirect services from law-abiding residents to consistently attend to the effects of illegal actions by those who do not abide by the law.”
Helfrich urged residents to collaborate with the City of Cape Town in identifying those responsible for illegal dumping.
“By holding perpetrators accountable we can deter future occurrences and alleviate the burden placed on our communities. We remain committed to safeguarding the well-being of our residents and maintaining the integrity of our infrastructure.
DistrictMail & Helderberg Gazette reached out the City for comment, but at time of going to print on Tuesday morning (19 March) no response to an extensive enquiry was received.
