News / Local
Warren Park family abandons house after sewer burst
17 Nov 2021 at 00:12hrs | Views
SERIOUS sewer bursts in Warren Park 1 suburb of Harare have resulted in a family having to evacuate their home as raw sewage flowed over their premises, the neighbouring yards and a car park.
Mrs Charity Dembezeko of 34, 4th Avenue and her family, had temporarily deserted their home, with access into the house almost impossible, as one had to devise all sorts of means to navigate past through the gate.
The tarred road had to be closed to divert sewage into a storm water drain along the busy Warren Park-Kambuzuma road, normally a banned move but the lesser of evils in this case.
Just a few metres away it was also a sorry situation along 4th Avenue where there was a sewer burst along a road used by Warren Park 5 Primary School children to get to and from school. At around noon, a Grade 3 pupil was observed having a torrid time trying to get past the pools of sewage.
One of the infills being built besides a sewer line had its slab covered by effluent while council workers could be seen attending to the burst pipe.
Mrs Dembezeko said even her security was at threat, after being forced to open wide the usually closed sliding gate to allow for the smooth flow of the sewage.
"The council workers are supposed to attend to sewer bursts, but they want us to go and collect them using our own means. They also want us to pay them to attend to bursts, yet every month we are billed for sewage charges.
"I am not able to stay here at the moment, the gate has been wide open for days now as sewage is all over my yard," she said.
Another resident, Mrs Susan Musariri said they just woke up on Sunday morning to the surprise of seeing sewage flowing on their backyards and streets of 4th Avenue and 14 and 15 Crescents.
"The sewage problems started after the creation of infill stands. When the area was planned, it had a certain amount of houses that it could accommodate with the sewer network. When the new houses were erected, there was never an upgrade of sewer systems.
"Most new houses were built over water or sewer pipelines. We are having challenges now especially during the rainy season. There are few drainage systems, now causing sewers to have much pressure," she said.
Acting council spokesperson Mr Innocent Ruwende yesterday said staff were attending to the bursts.
"We have blockages in 14 and 33 Crescents and blockages were caused by foreign objects which found their way into sewer lines. As we speak our teams are on the ground working to fix the problem.
"The other fault is where a manhole was vandalised and fell into one of our lines. Council is encouraging residents to practice hygiene at household level so that we minimize sewer burst.
"Spoons and sand are common features found in sewers," he said.
Mr Ruwende also said council workers are paid by the local authority to attend to bursts, urging residents to report anyone was demanding kickbacks.
Mrs Charity Dembezeko of 34, 4th Avenue and her family, had temporarily deserted their home, with access into the house almost impossible, as one had to devise all sorts of means to navigate past through the gate.
The tarred road had to be closed to divert sewage into a storm water drain along the busy Warren Park-Kambuzuma road, normally a banned move but the lesser of evils in this case.
Just a few metres away it was also a sorry situation along 4th Avenue where there was a sewer burst along a road used by Warren Park 5 Primary School children to get to and from school. At around noon, a Grade 3 pupil was observed having a torrid time trying to get past the pools of sewage.
One of the infills being built besides a sewer line had its slab covered by effluent while council workers could be seen attending to the burst pipe.
Mrs Dembezeko said even her security was at threat, after being forced to open wide the usually closed sliding gate to allow for the smooth flow of the sewage.
"The council workers are supposed to attend to sewer bursts, but they want us to go and collect them using our own means. They also want us to pay them to attend to bursts, yet every month we are billed for sewage charges.
"I am not able to stay here at the moment, the gate has been wide open for days now as sewage is all over my yard," she said.
"The sewage problems started after the creation of infill stands. When the area was planned, it had a certain amount of houses that it could accommodate with the sewer network. When the new houses were erected, there was never an upgrade of sewer systems.
"Most new houses were built over water or sewer pipelines. We are having challenges now especially during the rainy season. There are few drainage systems, now causing sewers to have much pressure," she said.
Acting council spokesperson Mr Innocent Ruwende yesterday said staff were attending to the bursts.
"We have blockages in 14 and 33 Crescents and blockages were caused by foreign objects which found their way into sewer lines. As we speak our teams are on the ground working to fix the problem.
"The other fault is where a manhole was vandalised and fell into one of our lines. Council is encouraging residents to practice hygiene at household level so that we minimize sewer burst.
"Spoons and sand are common features found in sewers," he said.
Mr Ruwende also said council workers are paid by the local authority to attend to bursts, urging residents to report anyone was demanding kickbacks.
Source - The Herald
