EThekwini Mayor Councillor Cyril Xaba conducted an oversight visit to the Durban Heights Treatment Works following prolonged water outages in the north.

ETHEKWINi Mayor Councillor Cyril Xaba, together with the uMngeniuThukela Water board member Diana Hoorzuk, conducted a site inspection at the Durban Heights Water Treatment Works following the interruption of water supply in the northern parts of the City. The prolonged water interruption was due to algae growth which was contained in raw water from Inanda Dam. This resulted in the clogging of filters at the Durban Heights Water Treatment Works, causing reduction in the quantity of treated water. “Our visit to this water treatment plant was necessitated by calls we have received from residents complaining about the lack of water in the northern parts of the City for a considerable number of days.

As the leadership, we saw it appropriate to visit the plant to see first-hand what the challenges are,” said Mayor Xaba. The Durban Heights Reservoir is critical for the supply of water in eThekwini as it provides 590 megalitres of water per day. Mayor Xaba said he was grateful that the management of the water utility took them through their plans to resolve the problem leaving them satisfied about the interventions they are implementing. “We want to plead with residents to be patient as our teams are working tirelessly to restore water supply in all affected areas,” he added.

The Mayor also assured the people of eThekwini that there were ongoing engagements with uMngeniuThukela Water to resolve all water challenges in the City and practical solutions are being implemented to urgently turn the situation around. The process of reservoir recovery has commenced with some reservoirs expected to recover sooner than others. High level zones or tower zones will take longer to recover. The Municipality and uMngeni-UThukela Water urge residents to continue to use water sparingly as the demand remains high in the northern parts of the City.