Undertakers plan to protest broken furnaces at Mobeni Heights Crematorium

The Mobeni Heights Crematorium has not been functioning for more than three years, which refurbishment closed during lockdown.

The Mobeni Heights Crematorium has not been functioning for more than three years, which refurbishment closed during lockdown.

Published Sep 23, 2020

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Durban - THE National Funeral Practitioners Association of SA (Nafupa SA) said they would protest again as a last resort to force the eThekwini Municipality to fix the Mobeni Heights Crematorium.

This was after funeral directors said the state of the facility still brought undue grief to bereaved families after more than five years of promises by the municipality to fix its broken furnaces.

Nafupa SA president Muzi Hlengwa said he would be meeting with members this week, or the next, to plan a strike against the city’s lack of “care” for the poor communities that rely on the facility.

“After so many years of complaining about that crematorium, eThekwini Municipality doesn’t seem to care about the inconvenience caused to the poor in Chatsworth and surrounding areas. Families spend about R600 to cremate at that facility, including all the paperwork. Now these communities have spent thousands of rand at private crematoriums,” Hlengwa said.

He recently led the protest that saw undertakers downing tools for three days in demand for better working conditions.

Chatsworth undertaker Clive Moodley said the facility had been closed “a while back” when the one remaining furnace broke down.

“We have had numerous meetings with municipal officials and we spoke about this crematorium in all those meetings, and empty promises were made. The Chatsworth community is not rich but now they have to travel to the privately-owned Clare Estate Crematorium for cremation services - and all this at an additional cost,” Moodley said.

After many engagements with the city to solicit its intervention and fixing of the facility, the latest promise was made earlier this year that the facility would be in operation in February. At the time, the city reportedly said the long-awaited furnace had arrived, and it was unknown why it had not been installed.

Municipality spokesperson Msawakhe Mayisela yesterday said: “We are pleased to announce that the Mobeni Crematorium will be up and running soon. We are in the process of installing the furnace. Soon after, we will arrange a meeting for the air quality management authority to conduct the testing for a full day (three to four cremations required).

“The proposed date to open the facility to the public is October 6, 2020, but this is dependent on results of the testing.”

Daily News

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