---
title: "Frustrated Durban residents picket at city hall as 'last resort', demanding water after eight years of taps running dry"
description: "The standpipes in ward 105 have been dry since 2016, and frustrated residents have had enough."
type: "NewsArticle"
publisher: "Daily Maverick"
site: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za"
section: "GROUNDUP"
author: "Tsoanelo Sefoloko"
author_url: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/author/tsoanelo-sefoloko/"
canonical_url: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2024-10-04-frustrated-durban-residents-picket-at-city-hall-as-last-resort-demanding-water-after-eight-years-of-taps-running-dry/"
published: "2024-10-04T12:12:56"
updated: "2024-10-04T12:13:00"
lang: "en-ZA"
word_count: 363
---

# Frustrated Durban residents picket at city hall as 'last resort', demanding water after eight years of taps running dry

> The standpipes in ward 105 have been dry since 2016, and frustrated residents have had enough.

By Tsoanelo Sefoloko · Published 4 October 2024, 14:12 SAST · Updated 4 October 2024, 14:13 SAST

## Key points
- In a desperate bid for hydration, over 100 residents of Durban's parched ward 105 marched to city hall, demanding not just tap water but also the resignation of their councillor, as eight years without a drop turned their patience into a protest.
- More than 100 residents from Durban's ward 105 protested for tap water outside city hall, demanding accountability from their councillor.
- The community has endured eight years without tap water, seeking assistance from the Right2Know Campaign after exhausting official channels.
- Ethekwini Municipality estimates R44-billion is needed to repair water infrastructure, with tankers remaining a temporary solution.
- Water curtailment measures will begin on 10 October to manage supply amid potential drought conditions, according to Mayor Cyril Xaba.

## Content

More than 100 people from ward 105 on the South Coast of Durban picketed outside the city hall on Thursday, 3 October 2024, demanding tap water. They also want their ward councillor to step down.

Last month, GroundUp reported how the 5,000 households in the ward have been without tap water for [eight years](https://groundup.org.za/article/eight-years-without-running-water-in-ethekwini/).

The protesters said they had tried all official avenues before approaching the Right2Know Campaign in April for help.

Right2Know provincial organiser Yolanda Yalezo said: “We were their last resort.” She said they helped the community to draft their protest memos.

Community leader Sikhumbuso Cele said organising the protest was difficult because of the cost of transport from ward 105, which is 40km away on the rural outskirts of the municipality.

Mlulama Ngcobo, from the office of the mayor, accepted the memo and said he would hand it “over to the relevant office”.

Ethekwini Municipality head of water and sanitation, Ednick Msweli, at a joint media briefing with the mayor and council members on Thursday, said the estimated cost (done three years ago) for repairing the infrastructure for water reticulation would be R44-billion. He said tankers were therefore a stop-gap measure and “you are still going to have them for a while”. Tankers were withdrawn as infrastructure was repaired, he said.

#### **Set to continue**

And water woes in eThekwini are set to continue. The Department of Water and Sanitation and eThekwini Municipality announced “water curtailment” starting 10 October.

Mayor of Ethekwini Cyril Xaba said that the amount of water that uMngeni-uThukela Water extracts from the Umgeni water supply system would be limited.

“This is to enable continued water availability, including during periods of below-average rainfall,” said Xaba. “The risk of not enforcing the (extraction) limit is that, should a drought occur, there would not be sufficient water in the system for uMngeni-uThukela Water to continue providing the eThekwini Municipality with a reliable water supply.”

“However, if uMngeni-uThukela Water implements the gradual reduction as planned, the water supply should remain stable, even with below-average rainfall. If there is below average rainfall, any restrictions required would be more manageable”. **DM ![Image](https://thirdpartyhits.groundup.org.za/counter/hit/dailymaverick/2024-10-04-durban-residents-without-water-for-8-years-picket-at-city-hall/)**

*First published by*[*GroundUp*](https://groundup.org.za/article/durban-residents-without-water-for-8-years-picket-at-city-hall/).

[Media on Daily Maverick: "GNU leaders"](https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2024-10-04-frustrated-durban-residents-picket-at-city-hall-as-last-resort-demanding-water-after-eight-years-of-taps-running-dry/)