Water struggle continues in Lethabong, Rustenburg
Residents in Lethabong near Rustenburg in North West braved the cold, cloudy weather on Friday morning in a search for water.
Wheelbarrows and bakkies stood next to a queue of men and women at a fire hydrant near Modimosana supermarket, affectionately known as kwa-Dinko, sharing the frustration the week-long water cut had brought.
Containers ranging from five litre buckets to 210 litre drums were lined up to be filled. The fire hydrant spouted water into containers uninterrupted.
“With the weekend approaching I could not think how funerals will be conducted without water. Worses neighbours cannot assist the bereaved family with drums as they too need to store water. This situation is turning us into an uncaring society,” said resident Abel Moemi.
He said he had taken out the back seat of his car to have more space to carry water containers.
“If this [water] issue is not addressed by this weekend, the situation might get out of control with people blocking roads.”
Taps ran dry in Lethabong on Monday night.
The Rustenburg municipality said the water supply interruption was due to low pressure on the bulk water pipeline.
“There’s been low pressure on the bulk water pipeline in Lethabong and it’s anticipated to be fixed soon. Water tankers have been dispatched,” said spokesperson Thapelo Matebesi.
He said the low pressure started on Tuesday and was expected to be fixed on Wednesday.
“It’s not a water shutdown,” he said.
The affected areas were Soviet, Slovo and its extensions, Vula, Chesampama and Cuba, all in ward 27.