With only few days in the office the North West Department of Local Government and Human Settlements, Collen Maine, has hit the ground running to resolve the water debacle at Lekwa-Teemane Municipality. Local residents were admitted at the local hospital and clinics for diarrhea and stomach cramps after drinking contaminated water.
MEC Collen Maine said a bacteria was detected in the municipal dam which subsequently contaminated the water. “The water system was then flushed out and reservoirs emptied to clean up the water distribution system. The tests are still being conducted to determine the type of bacteria in the water; though it is suspected to be the E coli. The municipality had to stop distributing water to the community for safety precautions and the population of 30 000 was affected”, said MEC Maine.
Results of water tests will be out on Monday but further test will still be conducted to ensure that the matter is amicably resolved. MEC Maine further said “water has been restored to residents since yesterday evening and the situation will normalise as from next week. However residents are still advised to boil it before drinking or cooking. "
As a temporary measure residents are also being provided with water through tanks. Two technical committees which consists of officials from Lekwa-Teemane local and Dr. Ruth Segomotsi Mompati district municipality, Department of Health, Department of Water Affairs, Sedibeng Water and other stakeholders has been established to mitigate the effects of the incident including and make awareness campaign including health safety measures.
Enquiries:
North West Department of Local Government and Human Settlements
Dineo Thapelo
Cell: 072 218 2559
Lekwa-Teemane Local Municipality
Oratile Letebele
Cell: 082 302 9470
