More than 40,000 kgs of solid waste - chiefly nappies, rags, sanitary towels and wet wipes - have been removed from the sewer system in the Cape Town suburb of Manenberg over the past two months, the city administration has said.
The operation cost R624,110.
Cape Town's Water and Sanitation Directorate undertook a "bucketing" process in July and August on a bulk sever line. Bucketing involves the mechanical cleaning of sewer lines of waste that should not be in it, and which can cause the system to fail.
According to the Mayoral Committee Member for Water and Sanitation, Zahid Badroodien: "Had this massive build-up not been removed, it could have caused a major sewer blockage and pump station failure, spilling raw sewage into the surrounding community and posing serious health and environmental risks."
Badroodien added: "Every time a nappy or wet wipe is flushed, it increases the risk of blockages and overflows that threaten your neighbour's health and our environment."
[Image: By Discott - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=56776787]