Durban – Water from a burst pipe, that washed away 200m of soil underneath Earl Haig Road in Morningside on Friday, resulted in a minibus taxi plunging into a deep sinkhole.

EFF eThekwini caucus leader, Themba Mvubu, who was at the scene on Friday said the pipe burst after heavy rains the previous day.

“Upon arrival we noted that an Engineering, Stormwater and Roads team from eThekwini municipality had already arrived and started doing repair work which included excavation,” he said in a video posted on Facebook.

A breakdown tow service vehicle found itself in a similar position to the taxi it was attempting to tow, when it also fell into a sinkhole. A second breakdown vehicle had to assist both vehicles out of the sinkholes.

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“A minibus taxi was travelling on the Earl Haig Road with just the driver and one passenger when the taxi fell into the sinkhole. Luckily no one was injured,” said Mvubu.

Mvubu said the city workers laid a new water pipe for the water supply to be restored to the community.

He said an excavator was then used to fill the sinkholes.

EThekwini workers repairing a burst water pipe beneath Earl Haig Road in Morningside Durban after a minibus taxi plunged into a sinkhole created by the flowing water. Picture: EFF Councillor Themba Mvubu’s Facebook page

DA Morningside councillor Ernest Smith, said the issue on Earl Haig Road arose from a 6-8m long water pipe that burst which undermined 200m of the road.

“Numerous sinkholes occurred as well as damage to private property which is no doubt a cause for concern for residents and road users who are left questioning where their rates money is being utilised,” he said.

Both Smith and Mvubu said the issue is as a result of the failing infrastructure of the municipality as a whole.

Smith said ward 27 has seen at least 10 similar issues across various roads such as Earl Haig, Peter Mokaba and Lady Bruce which have been the cause of damage to citizens private property.

“Quite a number of motorists have found themselves at the bottom of these holes with extensive damage to their vehicles and with this most recent instance not only their vehicles but private property damaged as well,” he said.

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Smith said the municipality has a responsibility to ensure that the failing infrastructure including water lines, sewerage lines and electricity infrastructure are replaced timeously over a period of time to ensure that residents/ratepayers are serviced accordingly.

According to Smith during the Integrated Development Plan (IDP) meeting on May 5, he was not allowed to voice his concerns over the failing infrastructure as well as many other issues on behalf of the residents/business owners of the ward.

“The reality on the ground is simple - the ratepayers are not happy with the services they receive and are now demanding the municipality addresses the ageing infrastructure in the older parts of eThekwini such as Morningside, Essenwood, Springfield, Sydenham,Overport, Glenwood, Sherwood, Bonela, Umbilo, Malvern, Seaview, Isipingo any many others.

“This will take considerable budgeting and obviously cannot be done all at once; however, it needs to be done otherwise eThekwini risks losing its already shrinking ratepayer base,” said Smith.

Responding to a request for comment from The Mercury, the municipality said: “We are aware of a sinkhole on Earl Haig Road in Morningside. Our teams are attending to it.”

EThekwini workers repairing a burst water pipe beneath Earl Haig Road in Morningside Durban after a minibus taxi plunged into a sinkhole created by the flowing water. Picture: EFF Councillor Themba Mvubu’s Facebook page

THE MERCURY