Sol Plaatje, which includes the provincial capital, Kimberley, will be installing two new valves at Riverton this Saturday which will enable the municipality to isolate two bulk water lines in the area and have them function separately from one another. The municipality expects that water supply will return to normal on Sunday afternoon. It does not appear that additional Jojo tanks will be arranged, meaning residents with access to water in their homes must make alternative arrangements, filling up buckets and purchasing water beforehand. The existing Jojo tanks stationed in informal settlements will be filled up before the water interruption.

The Sol Plaatje Municipality has regularly faced issues related to water supply. The problems have long been blamed on old and damaged infrastructure, as well as climate change. The water constraints took centre stage in early 2019 when thousands of baby lesser flamingos were rescued from the Kamfer Dam due to the ongoing drought and scorching temperatures at that time. The Sol Plaatje Sewage Treatment Plant’s inability to generate potable water meant to ultimately fill the reservoir behind the dam, was identified as another issue. 

The rescue effort made international headlines, with the likes of CNN and NPR covering it. The situation eventually did return to normal and once the dam was filled, the lesser flamingos could live there again.

OFM News