Chatsworth without water as pipe bursts

PLUMBERS and municipal workers were busy repairing a burst pipe that left most of the Chatsworth area without water supply yesterday.

A main trunk underground water pipe sprung a leak late on Sunday night sending water gushing on to Rank Avenue. The flow of water tore out fencing and flooded the lower floor of the Saiva Sithantha Sungum Hall in Chatsworth. Videos had been circulating of the impact the flow of water, – from the pavement on to the road – had made within a few hours.

Ricky Chetty, the chairperson of the Saiva Sithantha Sungum, said the hall was partially flooded. An assessment will be undertaken to check if there was any further damages.

“The water had damaged the boundary walls. The walls got wet, broke and collapsed. We have debris in the yard. We could not do much about it,” he said.

He said the two-storey building was still standing. “We were lucky that no one stays at the hall, we mainly use it for the events. Upstairs is the main events hall; downstairs a dining hall.”

Chetty said no life was lost, but they have incurred damages.

Ward councillor Tony Govender confirmed a main trunk line pipe had burst. He advised members of the community to stay clear of the area as the road surface could be damaged.

There had been earlier interventions on Sunday by Govender to get local plumbers to converge at the site with the intention to stop the flooding – but the problem proved to be much bigger than anticipated.

“A large area is serviced by this water pipe which comes from the reservoir. The extent of the damage will be assessed. The road will also be checked if there was any erosion under the surface. Contractors were working in the area last week. I am not sure what caused the pipe to leak.”

The ethekwini Municipality had not commented by the time of publication. Bilal Khan of Operation Hydrate said they supplied residents with bottled water and were on standby if the pipe was not replaced or repaired overnight.