A water-supply disruption affected thousands of residents all over the Helderberg from Thursday 11 July to Tuesday morning (16 July).
Affected areas included Asanda Village, Lwandle, Nomzamo, Helderberg Industrial Area, Chris Nissen Park, Sir Lowry’s Pass Village as well as some suburbs within Gordon’s Bay, Strand and Somerset West.
The City of Cape Town’s Water and Sanitation Directorate was informed of a burst water main in Simon Street, Nomzamo last Thursday morning. The 600 mm pipe necessitated shutting off the water supply to the affected areas.
However, the repairs could not be carried out until several informal dwellings located above the burst water main were removed and relocated. Arrangements were made by the respective departments to provide an alternative site for the relocation of the affected residents.
The delay in repairs affected the 300 mm diameter pipeline that supplies the reservoirs for the Somerset West area.
By Friday (12 July), dismantling of dwellings began and an update by the City on Saturday afternoon stated that municipal workers worked throughout the night to try and complete the repairs. At that stage, the temporary shut-off had also affected Land-en-Zeezicht and Martinville in Somerset West.
Further details divulged that the construction work involved deep excavation and the repairs happened at an approximate depth of 4 m below ground level.
But later the evening, just as the repairs team prepared to restore the water supply, it encountered another disruptive water supply incident which involved the 760 mm bulk water main in Lourensford that sprung a leak.
At 06:00 on Sunday (14 July), the maintenance team was alerted that the pipe in Nomzamo had burst again, which required that the water supply be shut off again. The site was drained, excavation done and the repairs started again. A larger area had to be excavated simultaneously, and more dwellings dismantled, to allow for the installation of an additional valve on the pipeline to assist in managing the water supply in the area.
“Once these repairs in Nomzamo have been completed the reservoirs will be filled, and residents in all the anticipated affected areas enabled to store sufficient water in advance,” a City statement confirmed.
An update at midday Monday noted that the maintenance team worked through another night to secure the shoring of the extended deep excavation site in Nomzamo. This was done to ensure the safety of the team and prepare for repairs to the pipeline and the installation of a 325 mm diameter control valve, which will assist in managing the water supply in the area, while repairs to the leaking 760 mm bulk water main in Lourensford were still delayed.
Unathi Lasiti, proportional representative councillor in Nomzamo, kept residents updated via his Facebook page, anticipating that the water would be restored by Monday evening (15 July). But by Tuesday morning there was still no water supply.
The City teams worked through the night to insert the new connection, but expected inclement weather could again disrupt repairs. It was unclear when the water supply will be be restored.
