Car collapse renews crumbling infrastructure concerns

Residents of Overport say recurring water leaks, collapsing roads, and dangerous excavations are becoming an all too familiar sight as ageing infrastructure continues to deteriorate, with the latest incident on Brickfield Road sparking outrage and renewed calls for urgent intervention.

The Overport Ratepayers Association (ORA) has strongly condemned what it describes as the eThekwini Municipality’s continued ‘band-aid’ approach to repairing ageing water infrastructure, warning that the failure to replace deteriorating pipes is now placing motorists and residents at serious risk.

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The latest incident unfolded on Monday evening, May 4, when water was seen gushing from an underground leak on Brickfield Road at approximately 5:20pm. Emergency repairs were reportedly carried out in the early hours of Tuesday morning, May 5, with municipal teams excavating a large section of the roadway to access the damaged pipe. However, according to the ORA, the repairs exposed deeper systemic failures that residents say have plagued Overport for years.

“This is not an accident – it is the predictable outcome of years of neglect. The municipality keeps patching up old pipes instead of replacing them. Meanwhile, our roads are being dug up repeatedly, and now motorists are paying the price with damaged vehicles and unsafe roads,” ORA chairman, Abdool Valodia said.

The association alleged that inadequate barricading around the excavation site created further danger for motorists. According to the ORA, there were too few barricade poles and they were unstable, warning tape was insufficient, and the excavation area was poorly demarcated and not clearly visible at night. As a result, several vehicles were reportedly damaged.

A Toyota Etios allegedly struck the barricades, another motorist suffered a burst tyre, while a third vehicle became lodged after partially falling into the excavation site. Frustrated residents and ORA members said they were ultimately forced to intervene themselves by reinforcing barricades with additional poles, tape, sand and physical barriers.

A tow truck fitted with flashing lights was also stationed at the scene until late at night to warn approaching motorists. Residents claim the reinforced barricades were later removed, while loose sand and an uneven raised hump continue to pose a hazard to road users.

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Valodia has called on the municipality to urgently replace ageing water pipes with continuous piping, fully repair the damaged roadway and conduct a comprehensive audit of water infrastructure across Overport.

“We cannot keep applying band-aids to a broken system. It’s time for real, lasting solutions,” Valodia added. At the time of publication, the eThekwini Municipality had acknowledged Rising Sun’s request for comment, stating that the matter was receiving attention and that information was still being collated from the relevant department. However, no further response had been received at the time of publication of this article.