The imminent water supply crisis in eThekwini has left residents worried about the municipality’s approach to addressing the issue. Recent reports revealed that the City was grappling with serious challenges in managing its water resources, leading to growing fears of potential shortages and water shedding. The lack of clarity about the municipality’s strategy for ensuring a stable water supply has intensified residents’ anxiety in recent weeks.
Over the last few, residents of wards 25, 27 and 31 experienced low water pressure, or no water at all from about 8pm to around 5am daily. The municipality was mum about whether it was indeed water-shedding or not. However, a well placed source confirmed that the area was affected by water shedding, but it has since stopped.
eThekwini water crisiswater
Ratepayers are particularly concerned about the effectiveness of current measures and the lack of communication from the authorities. They are calling for more detailed information on how the crisis will be managed, what steps are being taken to mitigate its impact, and how can they best prepare for structured water outages.
Ward councillors are inundated with complaints, including prolonged water outages, regular pipe bursts, and leaks. The pressing question is whether the municipality has a concrete plan to address these problems or whether residents will be met with dry taps compounded by an ageing infrastructure, perpetual low reservoir levels and pipelines that need urgent replacement.
The situation highlights the critical need for effective water management and infrastructure maintenance, especially in a densely populated metropolitan like eThekwini.
As the crisis looms, ratepayers seek assurance that the municipality has a robust plan to secure their water supply and prevent further disruptions.
Imtiaz Syed, PR councillor of Ward 31, and leader of the Active Citizens Coalition has raised concerns in council about the City’s plans. He said that the city has yet to provide resolutions. In February, over 518 burst pipes and leaks were reported in Wards 25, 465 in Ward 27, and 147 in Ward 31. On Peter Mokaba Ridge and St Thomas roads in Morningside alone, 69 burst pipes and leaks were reported between January 2022 and February 2023. “A year has gone by and there has been no confirmation on whether the budget was approved or not. “Ward 31 especially, among other wards, is suffering immensely with water shortages. Burst pipes are the order of the day, and there seems to be no solution in sight as areas buckle under weakening infrastructure,” said Syed.
He said that the problem was exacerbated by what is perceived to be water shedding in the ward and surrounding wards due to the supply from the Wiggins Reservoir. “How many water pipe bursts have been reported in these wards since last year, how much is it costing the municipality to repair it, and how much water has been lost?” he said.
Syed criticised the municipality’s response, which indicated a six to 10-week timeframe for designing and producing drawings to repair the pipeline on Peter Mokaba Ridge and St Thomas roads. “Even if the project’s budget were approved, it could take several years to complete,” he said.
With no confirmation on the approval of the budget and worsening conditions, Syed said that he was “frustrated” about the continued water shortages and frequent pipe bursts. He assured ratepayers that his party would continue to pursue the matter at council level and seek answers for the people. Meanwhile, the eThekwini Municipality has been urging residents to use water “sparingly” without any further explanation.
Despite this, some streets continue to experience freshwater leaks for days, including valves that seem to be unable to handle the pressure for growing communities, highlighting the urgent need for effective solutions and communication from the municipality.
The municipality was contacted for comment. At the time of going to print the City had yet to respond.
