The KwaZulu-Natal Department of Health and eThekwini Municipality are taking urgent steps to ensure that hospitals are adequately equipped to handle the water crisis.
Following a recent visit to Prince Mshiyeni Memorial Hospital, Health MEC Nomagugu Simelane emphasised the need for a comprehensive plan to safeguard healthcare facilities across the city.
Simelane said following the explanation they received from the eThekwini Municipality when they visited Prince Mshiyeni Memorial Hospital on Tuesday, they realised they needed a plan for all hospitals in the city.
“We’ve got now a small team that has the management of the Department of Health and the city, which will look into different hospitals and how they will be affected at any given time by issues of water and what plans are going to be put in place to be to deal with that,” Simelane said.
On Thursday, eThekwini Municipality spokesperson Gugu Sisilana said water supply at Prince Mshiyeni Memorial Hospital in uMlazi has been restored after interventions to stabilise the system.
“A municipal water operational team has been working tirelessly to build sufficient storage to improve the flow to the hospital,” Sisilana said.
“The team further undertook an investigation on the meter and the feeding pipeline to clear any blockages and repair leaks.
“While these interventions were under way, the city continued to fill up the hospital storage reservoirs with water tankers.”
Sisilana said the city will continue working on various interventions to manage and reduce the increase in water demand currently affecting areas in the south.
“The increase in demand was exacerbated by the demand increased significantly with the onset of the summer season, which resulted in low pressure and no water supply in critical points across supply systems,” Sisilana explained.
“This is in addition to the current curtailment measures that were implemented by uMngeni-uThukela Water in October last year.”
Meanwhile, in a statement on Wednesday, the DA in KZN called for drastic measures from the ANC/EFF-run eThekwini Municipality as taps run dry at hospitals within the province’s only metro.
DA KZN spokesperson on health Dr Imran Keeka said: “Recent reports that there is little to no water at some of KZN’s largest hospitals are extremely disturbing.”
He said this as Prince Mshiyeni Memorial Hospital, RK Khan, Mahatma Gandhi and Victoria Mxenge Hospital (formerly King Edward Hospital) – all of which cater to thousands of KZN residents – are literally left dry.
Keeka explained that water is vital within our hospitals. the fact that it is not readily available for human consumption has left patients and staff suffering and is a violation of the most basic human rights.
“The reality is that eThekwini hospitals without water are a ticking time bomb about to be set off by an incompetent, dysfunctional municipality with a rotten ANC/EFF coalition at its core. This disastrous state of affairs cannot continue and Mayor Cyril Xaba and his City Manager Musa Mbhele must act now or they will have blood on their hands,” Keeka said.