Gweru water crisis deepens

GWERU residents associations have called on government to intervene and address the dire water crisis in the city.

Most parts of the Midlands capital have gone for two weeks without tap water.

Speaking yesterday at a joint Press conference, Gweru Residents and Ratepayers Association  director Cornelia Selipiwe said the water crisis must be declared a state of emergency.

"What we have at the moment is the local authority purporting to be on top of the situation when we have gone for more than two weeks without water," Selipiwe said.

"What we need is the government to chip in and help with resources to address the water situation.

"As residents we declare the water situation as a state of emergency and, therefore, request the Ministry of Local Government and the Minister of State for Midlands to intervene."

Gweru Residents Forum director Charles Mazorodze said council should invite other stakeholders as the water crisis was a public health threat.

"The current water situation in the city has reached alarming levels and it's a serious crisis we are facing at themoment and requires other stakeholders to come in and assist," Mazorodze said.

"At this point, city fathers should also reconfigure how they disseminate information over the water schedule."

The water crisis comes at a time when cholera has spread across the country, killing over 140 people and infecting at least 7 000 others.

In a public notice on Monday, the local authority said a burst pipe at Gwenoro had disrupted water supply to the city.

Council, however, said its engineers were on the ground attending to the problem.

"We are dewatering and excavating hence we might finish maintenance and repairs on Wednesday 15 November (today)," council said in a statement.

Over the years, the local authority has blamed old water pipes and power cuts as the major factors affecting the supply of water in the city.