JOHANNESBURG - Residents of Protea Retirement Village in Primrose, Ekurhuleni say they have been without a reliable water supply for at least 51 days, leaving elderly people struggling with basic daily activities as they cast their special votes on Monday.
For many residents at the retirement village, the water crisis has turned everyday tasks such as bathing, washing clothes, doing dishes and cleaning into an exhausting struggle.
Some residents say they have been forced to rely on family members to bring them water, while others wake up in the early hours of the morning in the hope of collecting whatever water comes through their taps.
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One resident described the situation as unbearable, saying she could not remember when last she had a proper bath.
“It's very difficult. First of all, you have dirty washing you can't wash. It's stinking because you've been exercising. You can't do dishes. You cannot bathe properly because you store a bit of water in the bath. You've got to wash in a tub or out of a basin.
“I can't remember when I last had a decent bath. Dishes, cleaning floors, you can do nothing. Without water, we can do nothing. We need water for survival. They need to wake up and give us water.”
Another resident described the situation in Primrose as inhumane, particularly for elderly people who struggle to carry heavy containers of water.
“What is happening here in Primrose is inhumane. It's absolutely inhumane towards everybody and towards the elderly even more. They're unable to carry large amounts of water and make a living,” she said.
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The water crisis has also become an election issue, with some residents saying their experiences will influence how they cast their votes.
One resident said the struggle to collect water had taken a physical toll on her, particularly because she suffers from a bad back.
“Well, it'll definitely affect how I vote. The thing is that I'm getting containers, and I've got a bad back. Now I've got to pick up those containers, so at the end of the day, I can hardly walk."
“Our average age here is probably about 85, and our children have been bringing us water, but to pick up the containers is difficult.
“I haven't done washing. I'm on my last pair of pants that I can use because I haven't been able to do washing for so long. I get up at four o'clock in the morning to bath because we seem to have a bit of water then, but then it's two inches of bath water.”
Ward councillor Wendy Morgan says residents in Primrose, Dawnview and surrounding areas continue to experience an unreliable water supply, despite Rand Water indicating that the Churchill pump station is operating at full capacity.
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Morgan attributed the intermittent supply to a shortage of water from Rand Water, explaining that the area receives water for a few hours overnight before the supply dries up during the day.
“This is a Rand Water problem. They cannot supply. The pump station in Primrose is a direct feed from Rand Water. So, the minute Rand Water starts throttling water, we're having water between 10 at night and five in the morning, and then during the day, nothing,” she said.
Morgan said the situation also affects the operation of local pumps, which need to be monitored to prevent them from burning out when there is insufficient water.
She said she relies on communication from residents to alert Ekurhuleni when water supplies run dry so that the municipality can switch off the pumps where necessary.
“But if there's no water from Rand Water, there's nothing we can do from our side at all,” Morgan said.