Equipment vandalised at Bloekombos, De Novo reservoirs

Municipal water-supply equipment at the Bloekombos and De Novo reservoirs was vandalised on Thursday and Friday last week, the City said in a statement.

Vandalism interrupted the management of a sustained water supply in the reticulation network and that placed the entire system under “severe risk”, said the City.

The electricity supply to a pump station and control mechanisms at the reservoirs were vandalised on the Thursday followed by telemetry equipment on the Friday, the City said.

The equipment was important for the control of water supply to and from the reservoirs that supply drinking water to the Wallacedene, Bloekombos, De Novo and Kraaifontein communities, the City said.

Acting mayoral committee member for water and sanitation Siseko Mbandezi said staff now had to visit the installations hourly to make adjustments that the vandalised equipment had made it possible to do remotely.

“This ties up our manpower unnecessarily as they would have been attending to other service-related aspects of our operations. This completely defeats the objective of introducing technology to enhance service delivery,” he said.

He appealed to the public to report the perpetrators to the police and the City at 0800 11 00 77. An informant could receive R5000 if the perpetrator was caught or if the stolen materials were recovered, he said.