NELSON Mandela's home village of Qunu has been hit hard by a water crisis, forcing residents to draw the precious liquid from pools normally used by animals.
Concerns have been raised that this could lead to an outbreak of waterborne diseases.
Villagers said taps had run dry two weeks ago and they now collect water from a fountain near the Mandela family graveyard in the village which was serving more than 800 households.
Villagers start queuing from as early as 5am every day.
A small pool of water has formed near the fountain.
Yesterday, sweet wrappers, condoms, cow dung, papers and green algae were seen in the water.
Some residents had to travel from surrounding villages to collect water from the fountain.
"I am a mother of a 15-month-old boy, and I fear for his health and that of his young siblings," said Noluthando Mandela, who lives close to the former president's house.
Mandela said he had to boil the water and allow it to cool before drinking it.
"This takes a lot of time to do," she said.
But some residents admitted they were not boiling the water.
Mzwandile Maqhwabane, who stays with his sick mother, said the situation was worrying.
"My mother needs to drink and be bathed with clean and purified water. Consuming such dirty water could make things worse," he said.
Andile Nkunzi and Anelisiwe Manana said the village had slipped back to the years when people drew water from streams and springs.
"This is of great concern, especially that we are Madiba's home village. We should not be suffering like this. This village is known worldwide," said Manana while filling her 25-litre drum with murky water.
Staff at a local clinic said they had not seen an increase in the number of patients since the crisis broke, but warned that water should be purified before drinking it. Local traditional leader Nokwanele Balizulu expressed concern at the situation and said she would take the matter up with authorities in the OR Tambo district municipality.
"We are a poor village and fear that if there is an outbreak [of disease] things will get a lot worse. We just hope the water supply will be restored soon," said Balizulu.
However, she partly blamed the community for the situation, citing illegal water connections.
"People connect their taps and it has caused problems with the supply and flow," said Balizulu.
Local councillor Bulelwa Mazini said the authorities were trying to sort out the matter.
The OR Tambo District Municipality, the water authority for the area, is spending about R80-million on water-related infrastructure upgrades in the district.
The municipality did not respond to our questions by the time of going to print.
newsdesk@sowetan.co.za
For more stories like this one, be sure to buy the Sowetan newspaper from Mondays to Fridays
Dirty water for Qunu - Madiba neighbours fear disease outbreak
NELSON Mandela's home village of Qunu has been hit hard by a water crisis, forcing residents to draw the precious liquid from pools normally used by animals.
Concerns have been raised that this could lead to an outbreak of waterborne diseases.
Villagers said taps had run dry two weeks ago and they now collect water from a fountain near the Mandela family graveyard in the village which was serving more than 800 households.
Villagers start queuing from as early as 5am every day.
A small pool of water has formed near the fountain.
Yesterday, sweet wrappers, condoms, cow dung, papers and green algae were seen in the water.
Some residents had to travel from surrounding villages to collect water from the fountain.
"I am a mother of a 15-month-old boy, and I fear for his health and that of his young siblings," said Noluthando Mandela, who lives close to the former president's house.
Mandela said he had to boil the water and allow it to cool before drinking it.
"This takes a lot of time to do," she said.
But some residents admitted they were not boiling the water.
Mzwandile Maqhwabane, who stays with his sick mother, said the situation was worrying.
"My mother needs to drink and be bathed with clean and purified water. Consuming such dirty water could make things worse," he said.
Andile Nkunzi and Anelisiwe Manana said the village had slipped back to the years when people drew water from streams and springs.
"This is of great concern, especially that we are Madiba's home village. We should not be suffering like this. This village is known worldwide," said Manana while filling her 25-litre drum with murky water.
Staff at a local clinic said they had not seen an increase in the number of patients since the crisis broke, but warned that water should be purified before drinking it. Local traditional leader Nokwanele Balizulu expressed concern at the situation and said she would take the matter up with authorities in the OR Tambo district municipality.
"We are a poor village and fear that if there is an outbreak [of disease] things will get a lot worse. We just hope the water supply will be restored soon," said Balizulu.
However, she partly blamed the community for the situation, citing illegal water connections.
"People connect their taps and it has caused problems with the supply and flow," said Balizulu.
Local councillor Bulelwa Mazini said the authorities were trying to sort out the matter.
The OR Tambo District Municipality, the water authority for the area, is spending about R80-million on water-related infrastructure upgrades in the district.
The municipality did not respond to our questions by the time of going to print.
newsdesk@sowetan.co.za
For more stories like this one, be sure to buy the Sowetan newspaper from Mondays to Fridays
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