CoCT completes maintenance on Cape Flats water network

The City of Cape Town has completed its maintenance on the Cape Flats water network. The repair work, which affected 22 areas, was resolved within the scheduled time frame of 72-hours.

According to the municipality, the shutdown was necessary to replace, amongst others, faulty valves.

COURTESY: City of Cape Town

The City's Water and Sanitation Directorate has replaced six valves along the Cape Flats water network - five planned and one unplanned. Mayco Member for water & Sanitation, Zahid Badroodien, said as part of the work, teams also assessed the existing pipes and did repairs, welding and modifications where needed in Prince George Drive (two valves replaced), Blackbird corner of Acacia Road, Blackbird Avenue corner of Kestrel Road, Carrol Road, and George Road.

During the outage, water tankers were provided to residents over three days, 6 000l of bottled water donated by Peninsula Beverages to old age homes and care institutions with the help of DRM and ward councillors, and two 33 000L water tankers filled the City's tankers to reduce turnaround times when refilling its tankers.

🟦 PROJECT COMPLETE - CAPE FLATS WATER NETWORK CRITICAL VALVE REPLACEMENT | 27 June, 08:30

🧑‍🏭 Project completed on time. At 23:00 last night, with valves adjusted and flows restored, pressures were being monitored and all remaining air in the system is being released. pic.twitter.com/WL7aXZGa3o

— Dr Zahid Badroodien (@ZahidBadroodien) June 27, 2024

Badroodien says water will slowly and systematically fill the network to prevent pipe bursts. 

‘’For a short period, the water may be discoloured or look milky. This is because of trapped air in the pipes. If left to stand in a glass, the appearance will become clear, like normal. You can open an outside tap to expel any trapped air in the plumbing on your property. This water can be stored in a container for later use, so it's not wasted,’’ said Zahid Badroodien, Mayco Member for water & Sanitation.

‘’A special thank you to our residents for their patience during this operation and preparation leading up to it. Everyone played an important part of this operation. This work will ensure that the City's pipe infrastructure is in the best possible condition for years to come. Despite the temporary inconvenience, the long-lasting benefits are necessary to best ensure service delivery in a growing city,’’

‘’We are also very grateful to all our teams who have been working non-stop to complete this work in the shortest time possible. We will continue to closely monitor the water supply until it is restored to normal,’’ concluded Badroodien.

 

Done By: Mitchum George