Story by Lisa Masuku
Residents of Bulawayo’s Cowdray Park are sitting on a ticking health time bomb, with burst sewage pipes having gone for days without being attended to.
Seemingly oblivious of the health risks, the little ones play around the raw effluent flowing into their homes.
“We are always sick because of these spillages. To make matters worse our clinics are far,” said a resident.
“Sewage flowing into houses has become a normal site here, and this is exposing us to health hazards like cholera,” said another resident.
“We have been reporting to the local authority, but it seems they are not interested,” another resident noted.
“We are pleading with the Bulawayo City Council to hear our cries. We are tired of being neglected. We will end up dying because of this,” added another resident.
The Bulawayo City Council confirmed that it is overwhelmed by sewage spills.
“We are working flat out to address this challenge it’s just that there is a lot of backlogs. The water situation is worsening our challenges,” said corporate communications manager of Bulawayo City Council, Ms Nesisa Mpofu.
Cowdray Park is one of the hot spots when it comes burst sewer, leaving residents at risk of waterborne diseases.
