Taps remain dry after three months in Sundays River Valley homes as region prepares for citrus harvest

Some families in the Sundays River Valley Municipality have been without water for three months. Clinics, schools and businesses have been severely affected and residents are unable to flush their toilets. The municipality blames rolling blackouts for the problem but residents are sceptical.

Households in Addo and Paterson are relying on harvesting rainwater and drawing water from illegal pipe connections. They say the situation is getting worse as seasonal workers flock into the area for the citrus-picking season.

Houses in the upper part of Mandela Village in Paterson are the most severely affected.

“For three months our water taps have completely dried up,” said Nontsikelo Ntseta from Mandela Village. “In this upper area, we have about 80 households but only two households have water from their taps. This area is old, but the municipality has failed to fix its water problems. It has been struggling to supply us with water for many years.”

Ntseta says even before rolling blackouts started, water supply was already intermittent because water pressure from the reservoirs was low. “There were times when we lived for three days or a week without water. Then we had to go and ask for water from houses in the lower area,” she said.

“The municipality then decided to provide us with Jojo tanks in order to harvest rainwater,” Ntseta said.

“At our KwaZenzele Clinic the nurses say they are only taking 20 patients a day because there is no water. They do this in order to prevent the patients from using the toilets. In the past when water was available the clinic used to take more patients a day.”

Ntseta, who is diabetic, says she has to wake up early to queue at the clinic to be seen.

“I have three children who are still at school. Sometimes we are told by their teachers to keep them at home for three weeks because there is no water at the school. The schools have been asking our children to bring five litres of water to school in order for learning and teaching to continue,” Ntseta said.

She said Afgri, an animal feed company where her husband works as a driver, has been helping the community with water from its borehole for drinking and cooking and for funerals and traditional events.

But she has had to delay extending her house because there is no water for construction.

Her neighbour Thulani Ngqamfana told GroundUp: “Harvesting rainwater is not a solution because the rain is also scarce. Most people’s Jojo tanks here are empty.”

“When our toilets were built in 2021, we were promised that our water supply will improve. But now they are making an excuse with loadshedding,” he said.

Addo