Times Of Swaziland: ONLY 20 DAYS  SUPPLY LEFT

ONLY 20 DAYS  SUPPLY LEFT
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 BY PHEPHILE MOTAU on 25/11/2015 04:23:00


MBABANE – The Municipal Council of Mbabane has said it had water that would
last the capital’s population for only 20 days.
The municipality has warned that drastic action, as a result of the drought,
needed to be taken.
It has warned that it would need to shut down public facilities and provide
chemical toilets.
This was said by the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the municipality, Gideon
Mhlongo, yesterday. Mhlongo said the water situation in the city was dire as the
capacity of the Hawane Dam was less than 20 per cent. He said the water would
last the city for only two to three weeks.
It was previously reported that the dam water supply had been reduced from what
it normally was; 2 750 million litres to under 600 million litres.
usage
The daily usage of water in the capital is said to be 26 million litres. Mhlongo
said the water could last the city and Ngwenya only 20 days.
The dam supplies water to the capital city and Ngwenya.
He said the sanitation issue was very critical and if there was no water, the
municipality would not cope and they would provide chemical toilets for
recreational facilities. He also urged people who will host events to consider
the use of these toilets during their functions.
“We will look at providing chemical toilets in recreational areas and we will
close some facilities including the Prince of Wales and the swimming pool,”
Mhlongo said.
He said the Disaster Risk Reduction Action Committee (DRRAC) had come up with a
response plan which would be implemented in two stages.
He said the first stage would be voluntary mitigation by everyone and the second
stage would be compulsory and would be implemented as and when necessary.