Durban -
Mzwakhe Mthethwa of kwaMsani township in Mtubatuba has to get up at 2am and travel more than two kilometres to collect water.
Transporting six or more 20-litre containers, he has to rush to beat the morning “water traffic” at the only reliable communal water tap which supplies more than half the township.
If he fails, he will have to contend with the “afternoon nightmare” when queues of people and bakkies could stretch for hundreds of metres.
His is the life of many residents in the township and in other areas under the Umkhanyakude District Municipality which is grappling with severe water shortages.
In the run-up to the local government elections in August, the township was without water for weeks, leading to violent protests by the community. Since then, residents have had to come up with their own plans to survive, including buying Jojo tanks and buying water from private dealers.
Many have pointed an accusing finger at the uMkhanyakude District Municipality, saying while there is drought, the council - which is also under administration - has handled the crisis badly.
Senior managers are not in place. It spent millions of rand building a waterworks in Mtubatuba, which was completed more than two years ago but is yet to pump a drop of water.
To make matters worse, several water tankers meant to deliver water to drought-stricken residents have reportedly “disappeared”.
“The last time we had water from our taps was September 15,” Mthethwa told The Mercury when the newspaper visited the area.
“It’s a struggle as I have to travel about 2km to collect the water, sometimes I have to wake up at around 2am to make it here so I can get to work on time.
“Fortunately, I have a car so I can bring about six containers of water. I reuse my water for washing, bathing and flushing the toilet,” said Mthethwa.
“On the days that I am not feeling well and have a running stomach, I have to stay close to town so that I could use the bathrooms there. Even that has a downside to it because if you use the toilets you have to pay.”
A visit to the communal tap revealed the desperation. It’s a busy spot with a string of people with containers queuing to be filled. Some are brought there and collected in bakkies.
“It’s not a busy night tonight,” said one of those coming to collect water, who did not want to give his name.
“The water has been partially restored today in some parts of the township so there are no people here. On the days when there is no water, the queue would stretch for more than 300m, especially in the afternoon.”
Although the community is angry and frustrated with the crisis, they are full of praise for the Chinese after they installed the tap supplied with a Jojo tank water. They say it has become their saviour.
“This is the only reliable source of water here, although there are other communal taps in and around the township, this is the most reliable.”
Another resident said, however, that electricity was needed to pump the water, so if there was no electricity, there was no water.
As the evening closed in, more people in bakkies showed up to collect water. Mandlakhe Mjoli arrived with 10 containers and two large drums loaded in a bakkie he had borrowed.
He filled the containers and pulled out a pipe to draw water from the Jojo tank into his drums, but to his disappointment, the water in the Jojo tank was not high enough for water to be drawn up the pipe.
A relative said the 10 containers and the two drums would last the family about three days. She said they had no option but to collect their own water and, since the drought began, she had not seen a single water tanker delivering in her area.
“We also have Jojo tanks in our homes now and since it started to rain a little that has eased the pressure somewhat,” she said.
IFP councillor in the uMkhanyakude District Municipality, Cedric Zungu, said most of the challenges were exacerbated by the leadership crisis in the municipality.
“Everyone is acting here. There is no full-time manager employed. The corporate services manager recently quit. People are not getting water because several water tankers have simply disappeared and no one knows where those tankers went,” Zungu said.
“There is also an issue of the waterworks that was built at the cost of millions of rand that has never worked.”
The Mercury visited the waterworks and found it was still not working. It has still not been handed over to the company running other waterworks on behalf of the municipality and no one even knows how it works, said an official close to the project.
uMkhanyakude spokesman Mduduzi Dlamini said, “The Mtubatuba Water Waterworks is working but it’s not at full capacity. The scheme is working even though it is not working as we are expecting. We have written a letter to the contractor stating our dissatisfaction about his work.”
He said local municipalities had been given water tankers so they could manage the situation and they would be investigating why some areas had not been receiving water.
He said the tankers that “disappeared” had been withdrawn by the Department of Water Affairs.
He denied there was a leadership crisis.
“Remember we have a new council. It is good for the council to come with its own people.The posts have been advertised and the interviews will be conducted in the coming weeks.”
Mandlakhe Mjoli from Mtubatuba, Kwamsani, prepares to fill containers of water for his family at night.
The Mercury