DELMAS – A water shortage in Mandela Section, Botleng, is forcing residents to seek alternative water sources, while children are being exposed to a dangerous water-filled area where residents say a child drowned about three years ago.
Highveld Chronicle observed children playing in and around stagnant water pockets close to residential shacks. Residents said some children also swim in the water, raising concerns about drowning and possible exposure to contaminants.
The water-filled area forms part of a wetland that residents say has been affected by illegal dumping, sewer overflows and rainwater runoff. Residents recall a child drowning at the site about three years ago, adding urgency to their calls for the area to be secured.
Mandela Section resident Zinhle Senamile Nxumalo said mothers were deeply concerned about the danger facing children.
“Our children swim over there, play there, and push each other there. If I'm not mistaken, three years ago a child passed away over there. And the situation there is serious,” she said.
Nxumalo said residents want the dangerous area fenced off or drained.
“We were asking, as mothers of the children, if you could perhaps fence it off or install pipes to drain the water downward,” she said.
But the danger around the wetland is only part of the problem, as residents also face unreliable access to water. The water challenge is now becoming a crisis, with residents in the upper section of the wetland reportedly digging out a small groundwater source, believed to be an underground leak or natural spring, to collect water for household use, including drinking. The source has not been tested or verified as safe for human consumption.
Mandela Section resident Nhlanhla Sitoe said the community needs urgent assistance to secure reliable access to safe water and address the conditions forcing residents to seek alternatives.
Residents said municipal water tankers do not consistently reach the area and are calling for regular emergency water deliveries.
Siyabonga Ndebele, chairperson of Ukwanda Kwemvelo NPC, an organisation focused on environmental awareness and protection, said the situation should not be treated solely as a water-service problem.
“When a community is forced to depend on an untested water source while children play in stagnant water, we are no longer dealing with a single environmental problem. We are looking at a failure of protection, basic services and environmental management that can put lives at risk,” Ndebele told Highveld Chronicle.
Ndebele said authorities should address the environmental condition of the site while providing residents with safe water.
“The area needs to be assessed, the source of the pollution identified, the dangerous water pockets secured and the wetland rehabilitated. Environmental protection must happen alongside the provision of safe water,” he said.
Residents are calling for the municipality to consider fencing off the most dangerous sections and installing pipes or targeted drainage channels to redirect trapped water towards a lower-lying stream.
They also want the wetland assessed and rehabilitated through cooperation between Victor Khanye Local Municipality, the Department of Water and Sanitation, the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment, environmental organisations and nearby mining companies.
The proposed intervention would seek to identify possible pollution sources, protect the wetland and reduce risks to nearby households.
The publication approached Victor Khanye Local Municipality for comment on the reported water shortages, the alleged failure of municipal water tankers to consistently reach the area, safety concerns surrounding the water-filled site and the proposed drainage and rehabilitation measures.
The municipality had not responded by the time of publication.
