Milnerton residents say they are fed up with having to endure water interruptions with no warnings or explanations from the City.
There has been a flurry of complaints on the Milnerton Neighbours Facebook page about water cuts and low pressure in the taps.
Royal Ascot, Milnerton Ridge and Ysterplaat are some of the areas reporting problems.Janine Eden, of Oleander Street, near Milnerton Mediclinic, said she had experienced water-supply problems for the past six months.
“Ever since the City of Cape Town installed these new water meters, we have been having problems with our water supply.
“I have called the council on many occasions and they confirmed that I am meant to be getting 350 litres of water a day, but I hardly get 100 litres in reality. I want to know if I am going to get all this water back because I pay for it. This is not on,” she said.
Stephen Twine, who lives on Air Force Base Ysterplaat, said there were daily water outages at the base.
“Everyday, like clockwork, the water gets shut off around 6am for about eight to nine hours at a time. I would understand if there was warnings or any form of communication but nothing. Even when the water is back, the pressure out of the taps is very low,” he said.
Milnerton resident Catherine Ronaasen wanted to know there had been no public announcements from the City about the water cuts in the area.
“If this is not planned by the City, then what might it be? Is it sabotage maybe or some sort of emergency work? Either way, we would like to know what is going on,” she said.
Julie Tolladay, Royal Ascot, said it was unacceptable that no official warnings had been issued about the recurring water cuts.
“We had no water on July 4, 11, 19, 26, and 30. This has continued to this month where on August 8 and 13, we had little or no water at all. In today’s world, with Twitter, Facebook etc, residents would really appreciate some advance notice/warning of water disruptions,” she said.
In July, Tabletalk questioned the City about frequent water cuts at Milnerton Racecourse. PUT IN HEADLINE AND DATE At the time, Xanthea Limberg, Mayco member for informal settlement, water and waste services and engery, said the City
was rolling out pressure-management technology to save water.
“This pressure management rollout is saving approximately 60 million litres of water per day. Installation of automated pressure management valves does, however, require that water supply to the area be disrupted in some cases,” she said.
She said the City and the contractors would try to minimise inconvenience to residents and that press releases would be issued to notify the public about the work.
In a new statement from the City, Ms Limberg said that most of the interruptions raised by the residents were a result of the Milnerton pressure management installation, Montague Gardens zero pressure tests and other maintenance-related work. She also said that at times, it could be that residents have leaks on their property that they might not be aware of. “Residents who experience high bills should immediately check for leaks on their property, either by hiring a professional or following guidelines which can be found at www.capetown.gov.za/thinkwater,” she said.
