Couple gatvol of vrot, leaking flat
|Published
DEMAND INTERVENTION: Tohir Blankenberg. Picture: Jack Lestrade
An elderly couple from Hanover Park say they’ve exhausted all avenues to get help to stop their flat from flooding.
Tohir Blankenberg, 64, and his wife Fatima, 65, have been living in Erie Court for more than four decades.
They say the vrot City-owned building is falling apart and when it rains, water from the roof runs down into their flat on the middle floor.
In the kitchen, they’ve placed several buckets to catch the leaking water.
“The water is supposed to run through the weep holes, but it’s not and the water’s been stagnant. Now, it was looking for a weak point which it found, and that’s what’s been happening for the past six years,” says the frustrated oupa.
The pensioner says both he and his wife are still recovering from recent operations, and they are sick and tired of constantly mopping up and drying out their home.
“If we don’t put a heater on, this house is very, very cold. All I want them to do is just to fix what we reported to them. The water’s coming through the cracks,” he says.
He says that while several contractors and plumbers have already been to his home to assess the situation, the problem remains.
He says they also fear getting up at night, as they might slip and fall on the wet floors.
Mayco Member for Human Settlements Malusi Booi says they are aware of the issue: “The service request is in process. The health and safety of our residents is our priority and we urge residents to please be patient while we attend to the most urgent cases first.”