Effluent flows ‘become part of daily life’

FOR years, residents of a section of Cowdray Park suburb in Bulawayo have endured recurrent effluent flooding their streets into their homes, creating a health hazard.

About 50 homes have been affected and residents claim that the most recent burst was reported two weeks ago to Bulawayo City Council, which has not yet attended to the problem.

This raw sewage crisis, which has become a part of their daily lives, has not only caused immense inconvenience but also serious health concerns.

In interviews, residents said despite the council’s occasional interventions, the solutions have proven temporary, offering little respite.

When Chronicle news crew visited the sprawling suburb yesterday, effluent could be seen flowing through the streets creating a foul smell, which filled the air. The news crew was also greeted by a repugnant sight of human waste overflowing from the sewage tanks.

Residents said they were now forced to keep their windows closed to keep flies and mosquitoes away and to avoid the stench emanating from the raw sewage.

They expressed concern over the safety of their children as they play outdoors, and being exposed to the danger of contracting waterborne diseases such as cholera.

A resident, Mrs Kwazinkosi Ndlovu said they are scared to let their children play outside for fear of then contracting diseases.

“My major concern with this sewer problem is the children. As parents we have an obligation to protect our children from the imminent dangers of contracting diseases due to raw sewage, some of which is seeping into our homes,” she said.

“Children being children, they are not aware of the dangers of playing in pools of dirty water. Sometimes accidents happen and a child might slip and fall into a sewage puddle,”

Another resident, Mrs Rose Moyo who has a vending stall in front of her house, narrated how raw sewage had affected her business.

“As you can see I have a vending stall here which helps supplement my household income. However, during times like these when the raw sewer is overflowing my business gets affected because honestly who wants to buy tomatoes from a place where effluent would be flowing,” she said.

She said due to the prevailing water crisis, some residents have resorted to using the sewage water to mould bricks and flush down their toilets.

Another resident, Mr Peter Ndlovu said the wait for the council’s response can stretch for weeks. BCC corporate communications manager, Mrs Nesisa Mpofu said the local authority is aware of burst sewer challenges across the city.

She said they are currently engaged in talks with service providers to replace some of the pipes in the affected areas.
“The city is aware of various hotspots within the city where there are recurrent sewer bursts including Cowdray Park and we are currently engaged with various service providers.

We want to replace some of the sewer pipes in the sewer burst hotspots, but the problem is that we lack capital to fund the project,” said Mr Mpofu.