Oudtshoorn Municipality appointed Ruwocon Construction (Pty) as the main contractor for the Upgrade of the Water and Sewer Line in Ward 4, 6 and 8 to replace the existing asbestos water pipes. This replacement project is already underway and unfortunately, there will be water interruption from time to time in certain areas until 31 October 2022.
With the replacement of the new water pipes, the goal of the municipality is to ensure lesser inconveniences and water interruptions and was part of the financial planning for the new 2022-2023 financial year. Residents will experience some inconvenience with the installation but in the long run, it would be a benefit to the town as there would be fewer pipe bursts that lead to roads also being damaged and needing repairs. The municipality is planning to replace all asbestos pipes with PVC over the next few years. The asbestos pipe in Oudtshoorn is already old and is causing more and more problems with cracks
The streets that will be affected by the replacement of the asbestos water pipes are as follows:
• Petunia Avenue
• Begonia Avenue
• Meiring Street
• John Chapmans Street
• Bobby Le Roux Street
• Swart Street
• Panorama Street
• Romeo Crescent
While busy replacing water pipes on 09 August 2022 in Toekomsrus, an electricity cable was damaged which resulted in an electricity outage for a few hours. A contractor was called out by Ruwocon to assist with the problem and repair damages made by Ruwocon. The municipality was not financially impacted by this; however, it was a major inconvenience for the residents in certain areas of Oudtshoorn. The Executive Mayor of the Greater Oudtshoorn, Alderman Chris MacPherson, wants to apologise to these residents for any inconvenience caused. “One of the municipalities objectives are to provide basic service delivery to our residents and we will continue to do this.” Unfortunately, due to maintenance and repair work in our town, services will be interrupted, but the municipality wants to better the Greater Oudtshoorn with durable infrastructure.
Ruwocon also appointed general building contractors to carefully lift and replace any paving, asphalt (tar) or concrete on the sidewalks in front of some properties which will have to be lifted to lay the PVC pipes. For any enquiries please contact Leezl Stalmeester on 068 188 3836 or by email at Leezl.stalmeester@ruwacon.co.za.
The replacement of the asbestos water pipes will bring a more permanent solution to pipe burst problems in Oudtshoorn.