PLUMTREE Town Council has finally fenced off the sewage ponds that claimed the life of a young boy while endangering the lives of other humans and domestic animals.The new development was revealed by town council chairperson Similo Ndlovu, who said the sewage ponds had been a death trap from as far back as 2020.
Ndlovu said the council fenced off the area after several complaints from residents. “The sewage ponds that you are talking about are found in the George Silundika area. It so happened that during the COVID-19 period, a young boy fell into the pit and lost his life,” he said.
“So, there was now too much chaos because of that and people were talking too much. So we took it upon ourselves to fence off the ponds.“We haven’t finished fixing them by putting the pipes that will be spilling to the main sewer but we have only just fenced them off.”In 2022, Plumtree town council former chairperson Fanisani Dube said there were plans to squeeze the unfenced sewage pond project in the 2023 budget after the child’s death.
Plumtree residents had, in 2021, petitioned council for not fencing off sewage ponds, which had become a risk with people losing their lives at the ponds.Residents representative Richard Khumalo said the sewage ponds had become a danger to the lives of the people, hence the need to have them fenced off.
