Residents in Betty\u2019s Bay and to a lesser extent Kleinmond and Pringle Bay have been struggling with pipe bursts and low water pressure for years now. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
A majority of residents feel that although the pipe bursts are addressed the general problem is ageing infrastructure and nothing has been done about that for years. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Cllr Clinton Lerm, who forms part of the Mayoral Committee team and is currently the chairperson of Investment and Infrastructure, says Overstrand Municipality is aware of an inordinate number of pipe bursts within the Betty\u2019s Bay area as well as Pringle Bay and Kleinmond. \u201cBy request of the Mayor, an urgent meeting was held with ward councillors Theresa Els and Grant Cohen as well as the municipal officials. At the meeting the exact cause of the issue was discussed and it\u2019s clear our primary problem has been identified as ageing infrastructure and the densification of the areas. Currently one kilometre of pipe replacement is estimated at a cost of R1,5 million. Initial figures to ensure a way forward is estimated to be in the region of about R30 million,\u201d says Lerm. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
He says a while ago Pringle Bay had similar problems with regular pipe bursts. \u201cSystematically we replaced all of the pipes, when we had the funding to do so. With the current situation in Betty\u2019s Bay we believe that not only is the aging infrastructure blamed but also low water pressure. We are busy investigating this matter.\u201dWhat is it like living with regular pipe bursts and no water?<\/b>.<\/span> Ren\u00e9 Kaljee says the water outages are far worse than Eskom\u2019s outages. \u201cThe latter were more or less predictable as there is always some schedule and one can plan around it. Dry taps due to broken pipes happen out of the blue with no warning,\u201d says Kaljee..<\/span> Helen Gschwendtner, the owner of a laundry business in Betty\u2019s Bay, says the problems have escalated within the last year. \u201cI don\u2019t think it is just the old pipes in the system. I think the problem is the people who come to fix the bursts are not capable of doing their job as it is too much to handle for one person.\u201d .<\/span> Natasha Beyers asks how it is that all the residents of this area need to be satisfied with the poor service delivery of supply of water and how is it possible that there is never budget to address this. \u201cI have lived in the city most of my life where we never encountered these problems. Residents often go for days without water as it has happened previously where the supply was nothing and lasted for 72 hours. I guess my point is not all residents can afford JoJo tanks or even buy 5l<\/span> of water. This is a reality. You always find these curtain twitchers giving their biased opinions on various groups without sparing a thought for the less privileged. My question ultimately is what happens to the rates and taxes we pay?\u201d.<\/span> Nicola Lloyd says the water in Pringle Bay is brown and she doesn\u2019t drink it as it affects her stomach. \u201cNo one, including the laundry in town, can wash white linen. The water has been like this for months. That\u2019s apart from the frequent burst pipes.\u201d.<\/span> Sandy Immelman believes the surge in new residential development (especially since Covid-19 made Betty\u2019s Bay a \u201cZoom Town\u201d) has placed excessive strain on the aging water-supply infrastructure. \u201cThere are pipes bursting every few days \u2013 and I admire the speed that these are attended to \u2013 but often, just tracking the source takes hours, and then it would seem patch-ups are being done when in fact, the whole system seems to require replacement\/upgrading.\u201d.<\/span> Laurence Weddell, who owns two guest houses in Betty\u2019s Bay, says they received the worst ever reviews from guests after he had to deliver drinking water and water to flush toilets to his guests. \u201cThe town had sold out of all water. My guests were effectively without water for two full days plus then all the intermittent break downs that are happening continuously. I received my worst reviews ever based on my guest\u2019s experience. One set of guests couldn\u2019t get a change of linen because the water was out the whole day, and the laundromat couldn\u2019t do the laundry. As a guesthouse we rely on our ratings and reviews to attract guests, guests that come and spend their hard-earned money in the local economy. I know that the guests affected by this issue won\u2019t ever be back here. They said as much.\u201d.<\/span> Terry and Janet Longman moved to Betty\u2019s Bay over five years ago when \u201ceverything was working well\u201d. <\/b>\n<\/b><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHowever, over the past two to three years we are regularly without water or have such a slow trickle that we cannot even shower. This is a weekly, sometimes more than once a week, occurrence. We wonder why, if reports are correct, only 20% of Betty\u2019s Bay rates is channelled back into operating our village and maintaining infrastructure here. Surely this is unfair?\u201dMeeting to address the issues<\/b><\/b><\/b><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n A public feedback meeting regarding the pipe replacement projects for Betty\u2019s Bay, Pringle Bay and Kleinmond will take place today (12 January) at the Crassula Hall in Betty\u2019s Bay from 16:00 to 18:00. Due to Covid regulations, only 50 people will be allowed in the venue.Log the issues<\/b><\/b><\/p>\n Lerm urges residents to log any water issues to Overstrand Municipality\u2019s fault line at 028 313 8000. \u201cLogging these issues will help us to determine where the problematic areas are,\u201d concludes Lerm. <\/p><\/b><\/b><\/b>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Residents in Betty\u2019s Bay and to a lesser extent Kleinmond and Pringle Bay have been struggling with pipe bursts and low water pressure for years 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