A Panorama resident says in the past two months, their area has experienced seven sewage overflows. The sewage overflow occurs in Constantia Street, Panorama.
Dr. Hajiera Parker, the resident, told TygerBurger in an interview recently that they are fed-up with the blocked drains and sewage overflow onto their property. She says several houses in the street are affected.
According to Parker, the matter had been reported to the City of Cape Town.
She says several emails and phone calls had been made, but they are still battling with blocked drains and sewage overflows.
She says before, there used to be isolated events where sewage would overflow, however over the past two months, there had been seven such occurrences. “With all this recent rain, whenever there is good downpour, we are guaranteed there will be an overflow,” she says.
Parker and her family have been living in the leafy suburb for the past 20 years.
She said officials from the City visited her house, but that they would be informed to wait until the sewage flows away before work can be done. “We have been told that there is no point in cleaning it, that it will only happen again.”
She explained that at one time their driveway had been so flooded that they could not access it. The family has a cat, and they fear for its health. The family also struggled to access their bin and washing line at the back sometimes, she says.
We are not the only ones, my neighbour also complained about the blocked drains, she says. Some of the residents were informed that they need to install what is called “non-return valves”. The valve is said to help with the overflow; however the device comes at a price, Parker says. “It costs R9 000, and we are told to pay for it. Why must we pay when it is a City problem,” she says.
It is unclear as to what causes the blocked drains and sewage to overflow.
Parker visited one of the City’s depots in Goodwood, where she was informed that the municipality is currently busy with upgrades to its sewerage system. ”But we do not know how long this will take, and no one is giving us a timeline.”
One of the properties in the area had their swimming pool and living room overflow. “Some neighbours cannot flush their toilets and others say their non-return valves are not working.”
City responds
TygerBurger approached the City for feedback and comment about the issue.
In his response, Zahid Badroodien, Mayco member for water and sanitation, said the City’s water and sanitation team is aware of the ongoing sewer blockages experienced in this area and has been responding to service requests logged.
“The sewer blockages are predominantly caused by hand towels that are being disposed of into the system. This matter will now be investigated by the water pollution control unit to determine the source of the hand towels and to issue the contravention notice where necessary.
“Furthermore, this pipeline is on a list of sewer network upgrades, which will be done this financial year to extend its lifespan.
“Even with this planned proactive work, residents are still reminded to please not dispose of waste such as hand towels, fats and oils, into the sewer system because these items will continue to block pipes and result in overflows, regardless of the condition or size of sewer pipes,” Badroodien says.
For more tips on preventing sewer blockages, visit www.capetown.gov.za/blocked-sewers
