Algoa Fm
The community of Chris Hani in Kwanobuhle, Kariega, has received some much-needed relief following months without running tap water.
Residents of ward 46 took to the streets on Monday to demand answers from the Nelson Mandela Bay Metro on why there has been no water coming out of their taps for close on six months.
While the Municipality has been vocal about pushing back day zero in the Metro, residents in the area say day zero has already arrived and that they’ve had no official communication from city officials.
The Water Crisis Committee, which has been fighting for the Chris Hani community for months, says four water tankers were dispatched to the community on Monday.
The Committee’s Siyabulela Mama says running water has also started returning to some households in the area.
"It was unbelievable to see these water tankers stationed at key points around Chris Hani," he said.
He said he was excited about the developments in the community.
The Municipality had previously installed Jojo tanks to service the community's water needs but it had to take back two of them due to threats of vandalism by the community.
The Metro's water crisis joint operations centre spokesperson Luvuyo Bangazi told Algoa FM News that while the Jojo tanks were taken away there was no area without water access either through tanks or tankers.
However, the experience of residents on the ground told a different story when AlgoaFm News visited the area on Friday.
Several people said that the Jojo tanks were not filled with water daily and they could go for a full 24 hours without seeing a water tanker dispatched to the area.
One of the residents who sat forlornly with her 10-litre containers in front of a rainwater tank in Saxhwili Street said she had been sitting in the same spot for close on nine hours hoping that a water truck would come by to fill the tank.
She said she had left a sickly child at home who needed clean water.
An 82-year-old man said he had to stand in long queues to get clean water.
Another 35-year-old resident added that the water did not always appear to be clean as there was often sand-like residue at the bottom of her water buckets.
Margarette Stofile, who has lived in the area since 1991, said her tap ran dry in March and there had been no subsequent communication from the Municipality.
She said she did not even know who her ward 46’s councillor was as she had never him in the area.
“The water tankers sometimes arrive and sometimes we go without water for the whole day and then we have to ask for water at one of the four houses in the area which still have running water," she added.
Patrick Yayi is one of the residents who has had running water for the past few months but this has come with its challenges.
Yayi told AlgoaFM News that he has had to service the whole community with water at a great cost to his own pocket.
He said community members come during the night with their buckets to get water without his permission.
Yayi said he is now left with an exorbitant municipal bill of R13 000 which he is unable to pay.
"The community comes during the night to take water but sometimes I also give them water, especially those community members with children. I am pleading with the Metro to write off my water bill as I have had to help local residents because of the lack of water in the area," he added.
The Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality Water and Sanitation Senior Director Barry Martin put the whole situation into context.
Martin said that that particular area in Kwanobuhle was the most vulnerable in terms of water supply as it gets its water from Kouga Dam which was on just 4 % capacity at one stage.
He said the Metro then installed rainwater tanks at strategic points in the area should the water run dry from the smaller Loerie holding dam – not far from the Kouga.
Martin said at one point, the tanks ran dry while there was a feed problem from Loerie Dam – but this had since been corrected.
“So the issue about people being without water for four months, we have investigated the matter and there might be pockets [of residents] that did not have access to water but we had rainwater tanks running at the time," he added.
Martin said the Metro had meetings with aggrieved communities over the weekend and they are now aware that the rainwater tanks have been refilled.
Nelson Mandela Bay Executive Mayor Eugene Johnson said she was not aware that there was such a problem in the Chris Hani area.
"It is the first time that I hear that communities are complaining. You can see what we are trying to do - we are trying to work with all stakeholders to ensure that there is water. However, we will be going to Chris Hani to find out what's going on there so that we can ensure that their cry for help is addressed," Johnson said.
