Durban - SEWAGE has been leaking for two weeks in Briardene, Durban North, following two burst pipes, posing a health hazard.
DA ward 36 councillor Shaun Ryley said he had been trying to escalate the matter, but there had been no assistance from the eThekwini Municipality.
“The area is completely overflowing with sewage and it is now a matter of urgency. With schoolchildren out now, enjoying the holidays, this presents a health risk to them,” he said.
The first leak is in the narrow pathway on Krishna Road, which serves both as a pedestrian and vehicle thoroughfare for businesses and residents.
Waste from the leak is now flowing on to the busy Chris Hani Road.
The second leak is 500 metres away in Briar Lane, near informal complexes.
Dina, a vendor, runs a fast food shop along Krishna Road.
She sells hot food to the many workers at the business strip located on the road and the residents that pass by.
Dina enlisted the help of nearby construction workers to redirect the leak away from her shop.
Jason Hewer, sales manager at Service First, said they had gone through all the processes of reporting the problem but it had not been fixed.
“Two guys from the Water and Sanitation department came to look at the leak but they said they only deal with fresh water leaks; sewage falls to the waste department,” he said.
Hewer showed the Daily News correspondence with the eThekwini Municipality, along with councillor Ryley, dating back to June 16.
In all the various emails, the city has an identical response - that the matter has been escalated to the waste superintendent.
Attempts to get comment from the city were unfruitful.
Ryley said there was a worrying trend of leaking pipes in the city.
“There is a serious infrastructural deficiency. We cannot just keep fixing these pipes on an ad hoc basis; we need a long-term solution otherwise we are just putting a plaster over a gaping wound,” he said.