City advises of amendment to Joubert Street sewer repair operations
18 October 2023
The City’s Water and Sanitation Directorate is amending the working times for the contractor doing the sewer repairs in Joubert Street, Strand from last night, Tuesday 17 October. This follows an assessment of the current conditions and environment associated with the construction work.
A technical team from the City's Water and Sanitation Directorate on Tuesday 17 October 2023 assessed the current conditions. This was to ascertain the options available to best address the current scenario of overflowing sewers into the stormwater system and subsequently into the environment while the repairs are in progress. The challenge is that the flow in the sewer line is at capacity during the day and this strains over-pumping which results in overflows, making it difficult to replace the damaged section of pipe.
It was decided to adopt an alternate approach to the current work schedule to help manage the flow of sewage.
What to know about the changes
This involves switching over to night-time operations when the sewer has much lower flow which will enable the contractor to achieve its objective without any further delays. This means that the over-pumping will happen throughout the night and for this purpose the silent operating mobile pumps will be brought on site. This process was implemented from last night at 21:30 overnight until 05:00 this morning. Last night only one silent operating pump ran along with the normal audible pumps and thereafter additional silent operating pumps will be added.
It is imperative that we ensure that we create and use favourable conditions that will accelerate the repair and process to reduce the overall inconvenience caused in the area.
The City wishes to appeal to the residents in the immediate surrounds to exercise patience while this night-time work is in progress. It will only last for the next four nights which will provide sufficient time for the damaged pipe section to be replaced. Interested and affected stakeholders are also informed of these developments.
We thank the community for their ongoing patience and understanding. We regret the inconvenience that has been caused to our residents.
End
Published by:
City of Cape Town, Media Office
