Durban - A house built on top of a burst Msunduzi Municipality water pipe was demolished last week to allow the municipality to repair the pipe and restore water to residents in Esigodini, outside Pietermaritzburg.
In a statement on Friday, the city said deputy mayor, and chairperson of the Infrastructure Committee, Mxolisi Mkhize, visited the affected house where the burst pipe has resulted in water supply interruption in the area.
According to the municipality, Mkhize and committee members received reports of the burst water pipe on Wednesday. On arrival in Esigodini, the team made a shocking discovery: that the affected house was built on top of the pipe.
“As the assessments continued, the team noticed that the foundation of the house and the walls were already on the verge of collapse due to the water pressure in the underground pipes,” said the municipality.
Mkhize interacted with the owner of the house, who indicated that he has been living in the area for over 30 years and has never experienced challenges of burst water pipes.
The city said the deputy mayor raised concerns over the negligence of most residents living in the area.
“We have been warning residents not to build on top of the infrastructure, we are saddened that it has come to this. There is no easy way to resolve this issue. People cannot stay without water, that is why this house needs to be demolished to fix the pipe and restore water supply,” said Mkhize.
The city said the municipality will not be held accountable for damage to property if it is found that residents have erected structures on top of municipal infrastructure.
“The owner of the house will not be compensated for the damage caused, but the Infrastructure Committee made a call to the Disaster Management Unit to provide urgent assistance in the form of a temporary residential unit,” said the municipality.
The municipality said a team of employees will be working around the clock to fix the burst pipe and vowed to continue urging and educating people about the dangers of building structures on top of the municipal infrastructure.
“Residents need to follow proper procedures before they build houses. We do mark specific areas where people are not supposed to build houses, but they choose to ignore the signs. This can be avoided, but we also urge residents to work with us and avoid building on top of the infrastructure,” said the municipality.
