eThekwini Mayor Mxolisi Kaunda.
- Mxolisi Kaunda dove into the waters off the North Beach area, despite fluctuating E. coli readings in recent months.
- Kaunda and other officials declared the city open for the festive period.
- Experts previously warned residents and tourists to inspect the beach before taking the plunge.
Despite fluctuating water levels and sketchy infrastructure, Durban Mayor Mxolisi Kaunda swam off North Beach on Thursday to show tourists and residents that the beaches are safe.
Kaunda and a team of city officials, influencers and policemen kicked off the festive season by showcasing beach sports and highlighting a big security push this year.
After being challenged by the prosecutor last week to swim at beaches he considered safe, particularly Umhlanga Main Beach, Kaunda took the plunge at North Beach.
Opposition parties on Thursday branded Kaunda a failure for missing its deadline to fully repair infrastructure, which was further damaged after April floods.
Miscellaneous E. coli readings
While Kaunda declared North Beach and Umhlanga Main Beach currently safe to use, readings at both sites had varied in recent months.
Just seven days ago, North Beach, where Kaunda bravely basked, showed worryingly high levels of E. coli recorded by an independent company, Talbot, The Art of Water.
All plans are in place for the festive season. We are ready to receive visitors. There are more beaches open and we have a lot to offer residents and visitors. Today, eThekwini Mayor Mxolisi Kaunda demonstrated his swimming skills to officially declare the festive season open. Woz’eDurban. pic.twitter.com/xY0ckhm79r
— eThekwini Township (@eThekwiniM) December 1, 2022
eThekwini, who recently partnered with Talbot to publish E. coli readings, also showed high levels a week ago.
Last week, a sample taken by Talbot showed an E. coli level of 1,291/100ml, while eThekwini’s showed 2,014/100ml.
The City also missed its own deadline to repair all pump stations by December 1 and open all beaches.
Kaunda did not respond to questions from the media about missing the deadline.
Ohlange pumping station
Instead, he praised the commissioning of the Ohlange pumping station and said contractors were on site to finish repair work on the sewer lines and manholes.
He also praised the Northern Wastewater Treatment Work, claiming that it was “partially operational”… “and is capable of treating a significant amount of effluents that impacted the central beaches.”
But both pump stations are still competing with crosslinking at the stations as well.
Kaunda conceded to this, saying that many of the crosslink lines would be cleaned up in the coming months.
ActionSA Provincial Chairman Zwakele Mncwango said that rather than admit failure, Kaunda and the city resorted to “continually misleading the public into believing that progress has been made”.
He criticized the city for praising the Ohlange system, saying it was still dumping raw sewage into the river system that led to Umhlanga beach.
“It is a clear indication that the municipality is not completing basic tasks to meet the deadlines it had set itself, even though the deadline was clearly unrealistic.”
The prosecution’s eThekwini caucus leader, Thabani Mthethwa, said that despite repairs to the Ohlange pumping station, untreated effluent was flowing through the Ohlange river and onto Umhlanga beach.
EXPLAINER | What is happening to the eThekwini beaches and what is being done about it?
He said it was possible that E. coli could remain in the arena for some time.
“The alarm bells are ringing as we are on the eve of school closures and masses of people thronging our shores. It will not be unreasonable for some bathers to think that staying out of the water and on the sand may be the safest option.” but this might not be the case.”
What the experts said above
Earlier this month, Janet Simpkins, director of Adopt-a-River, warned visitors to check the state of the beaches before taking a dip during the December holidays, News24 reported.
“All beaches are certainly not affected, but you just have to be aware and cautious and visit beaches that [are] much safer, and beware of the changing nature of the water. If it smells funny or looks dirty, then you need to find another place to visit.”
Adopt-a-River is a registered nonprofit organization that has worked in the river, ocean, and environmental space for many years.
In November, Simpkins argued that the December 1 deadline to repair the infrastructure would not materialize.
Repairs to major trunk lines and wastewater treatment plants could be complex, Simpkins explained.
“Doing these repairs by the end of November is unrealistic. If they haven’t been addressed since the end of April, it’s not likely.”
