Durban - As dam levels continue to drop in KwaZulu-Natal, authorities have called for “decisive action” from consumers and warned that the rains along the coast over the past two days had brought little respite.
Residents on the North and South Coasts have told how they have been forced to make changes in their lives: the work they do, what they eat and even where their children play.
Meanwhile, more than 3 000 water restrictors have been fitted in homes in Westbrook, Belvedere and the Hambanathi area as the drought crisis deepens. Installations are now under way in Waterloo.
The eThekwini Municipality said on Tuesday that the restrictors allowed residents to get water from their taps at all times, but the flow of water was reduced by 30 percent.
“Every consumer (in the affected areas) will receive water through a restricted water supply method to ensure balanced water distribution,” said Tozi Mthethwa, eThekwini spokeswoman.
Mthethwa said the municipality had begun consulting communities to explain the rationale for the restrictions. The Waterloo and La Mercy communities had already been contacted.
“Mayor James Nxumalo has assured residents that once the water level at Hazelmere Dam has returned to a satisfactory level, meter connections will be returned to full pressure,” she said on Tuesday.
The water level at the Hazelmere Dam, which provides water to parts of the iLembe and eThekwini municipalities, was at 27.57% on Tuesday.
Shami Harichunder, spokesman for Umgeni Water, said the dam’s level would only improve if substantial rain fell in its catchment area, in the Kranskop and Wartburg areas.
While coastal areas had been refreshed by showers, the Midlands and inland, including Pietermaritzburg, had not seen a drop.
The water manager for KwaDukuza and Ndwedwe, Elias Bhengu, said the municipality had begun consultations with affected communities.
“The community understands the seriousness of the drought and has come up with suggestions of how it can be solved or dealt with,” he said.
The iLembe Municipality had also started implementing water rationing strategies.
The KZN Department of Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs said on Tuesday that despite the rains, the drought remained severe and the public needed to do more to conserve water.
“We would need weeks and weeks of sustained rainfall to replenish our fast-declining water reservoirs to return to water levels considered safe and sustainable.
“We therefore urge the public not to become complacent amid the recent rain showers, and to continue to conserve water to ensure the current reserves last longer,” said MEC Nomusa Dube-Ncube.
The restrictions have forced people in affected areas to make a variety of changes.
l Ray Ramdial, of Park Rynie on the South Coast, said: “We have cut down on the time we spend in the shower.” He no longer washes his car as often as he used to.
Ramdial, 47, who runs an interior decorating and construction company, said he had also extended water saving strategies to his business, and had forbidden his employees from having showers at work.
* Belvedere resident, Rungasamy Veerasamy, 61, said he had to collect water from tankers at 4am every day. It was the first time he had had to do this in the 30 years he had lived in Belvedere.
Water theft had also become an issue in the building in which he lived, and he had locked the tap outside his flat.
* Waterloo resident Nolufefe Dubeko said she had a hard time finding work in the sugar cane and construction industries because of the drought. Dubeko, 40, who has three children, said she was no longer able to grow vegetables at home, because they needed too much water.
* Selvum Odayar, of Belvedere, said she had a hard time entertaining her grandchildren, who were visiting her for the holidays.
The 57-year-old grandmother of six said she would not let them play outside because they might get dirty and have to have another bath with water they did not have.
* Community activist Dolly Munian, of the Belvedere Civic Association, said her 87-year-old mother also had to fetch water from the water tankers.
Meanwhile, a mass prayer for rain was being planned by the South African Hindu Dharma Sabha on Sunday at the Mount View Community Hall in Verulam, at 3pm.
Additional reporting by ANA.
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