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Excitement was evident on the faces of RR informal settlement residents in Site B, Khayelitsha, when an excavator started cleaning the reeds in the area. They said the cleaning will bring a bit of fresh air and new life.
The clearing process started last week Monday but no timeframe has been confirmed yet.
The residents expressed their gratitude to City Vision for publishing an article on their living conditions (“Rodents roam on beds” City Vision 28 February).
Angry residents claimed then that the pond had not been cleaned in more than three years. They claimed they lived in hell because of rodents and mosquitoes in the night.
Resident Lonwabo Sithole said he is a bit relieved now that the pond is being cleaned. He said the people who are most affected by the pond are those who live close to it.
“It will be much better now because the water can flow.
We used to sleep with mosquitoes biting us and rodents coming inside our shacks at night eating our groceries,” said Sithole.
The father of two children said his children have had rash and ringworms because they play in the dirty water.
He accused some of his neighbours of dumping dirty water and food into the pond.
“I wish as the community we can ensure that the pond is kept tidy all the time,” he said.
Ward 89 councillor Monde Nqulwana said the clean up had no time frame.
“People from RR section will be able to breathe because the water is not stagnant anymore.
The excavator is only making a channel for water to move. Once the water is able to move then the City will hire a company to cut the reeds,” he said.
Nqulwana urged people not to extend their shacks closer to the pond.
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