United Democratic Movement (UDM) member, Councillor Zakheni Nondaka, has appealed to the government to ensure that it replace temporary bridges which had been damaged by heavy rains. Nondaka said there were three bridges which were affected in Mhlontlo Local Municipality.
He confirmed that bridges which had been affected were the Thina, Madukuda and Chulunca bridges.
“We are worried because most of the time, these bridges are used by learners and now that the schools are open, it means it would be hard for them to reach their schools.
“People are crossing through the water when they want to go to the other side and this is also putting their lives at risk,” said Nondaka.
The traditional leader from Middle-Tyira location, Chief Siviwe Mcelu, said his area was facing a huge problem because it would be hard for his people to go to town.
He said even the AB350 buses would not be able to transport them, due to this problem.
“My people use the clinic that is in town and our children are attending schools that are also in town, meaning that they would lose a lot.
“We reported the matter to the ward councillors and the municipality. There are two bridges that had been affected in my area, Tyira and Chulunca,” said Mcelu.
Spokesperson for the Department of Transport, Unathi Binqose, said the department had noted those bridges and was aware of the situation. He said they knew that these heavy rains would leave people struggling.
“I can confirm that we have already started to build a temporary bridge in Chulunca so that the residents could be able to cross,” said Binqose.
He added that he was not sure about Tyira bridge, but he would also investigate it.
Binqose also revealed that another bridge that was being shown on social media, where people were trying to cross with a coffin, belongs to the Municipality.
“There is a bridge there; it is just that it’s a low-lying bridge which belongs to the municipality but we want people to know that not all the roads belong to the Department of Transport. But we make sure that if we see the problem we engage the municipality and ask them to resolve the matter quickly.”
