Some residents of Ontario Court in Hanover Park have complained about foul smelling water coming from their taps.
One resident, Hilton Plaatjies, said he almost swallowed a huge maggot, which was in the glass of water he got from his kitchen tap.
On Tuesday November 8, Mr Plaatjies was shocked when he found the maggot in his drinking water, and took it to the local housing office to complain.
“The officials at the local housing office told me the maggot probably came from my geyser, but I got myself a glass of water to drink, why would I use the warm water tap if I want to drink water? They didn’t take me seriously, and up until today (Thursday November 10), nobody was here to check it out,” Mr Plaatjies said.
Gigi Richards, who also lives in the court, said she was too scared to drink the water now, as she too, had noticed a foul smell coming from it.
Ms Richards suspects that roadworks in Athwood Road, just opposite Ontario Court, could possibly be the cause of the stink.
Despite Mr Plaatjies saying he lodged a complaint at the local housing office, the mayoral committee member for health, Siyabulela Mamkeli, said they had not received any complaints.
Asked whether the water is safe to drink, Mr Mamkeli said: “We do weekly chemical and bacteriological sampling of the potable water in the area and we can confirm 100 percent compliance.”
Mayoral committee member for utility services, Ernest Sonnenberg questioned whether it was possible for a maggot to come from a tap.
“About maggots getting into tap water – the mouth of a kitchen tap tends to attract flies, which then lay their eggs in that area, so the maggot has something to feed on after the egg has hatched. It is possible that water running through the tap could dislodge the maggot, but it does not necessarily mean that the municipal water supply has maggots.
“One would need to understand the hygiene of the home and inspect all the water areas in the home to give a conclusive answer. Also, until the worm is evaluated by the City’s Scientific Services, we cannot confirm that it was a maggot.”
He also dismissed speculation that the roadworks in Athwood Road could affect the quality of the drinking water.
Said Mr Sonnenberg: “The project under way in Athwood Road is for the construction of a new bulk sewer. At the moment, no flow is passing in this pipe. A project of this scale is affecting all services in the area. However, if a water interruption is required, it is handled by the City’s operational depot to the required standards.
“The construction, per se, cannot create smell or maggots in the water. We have, in the past, indicated that any organism which can be described as a maggot cannot pass through the water supply system, water meter and into the water tap but that these organisms actually hatch from eggs deposited in or close to the outlet of the tap.”
