Gweru Residents Turn to Boreholes Over Suspected Sewage in Municipal Water

Gweru — Residents in parts of Old Ascot have stopped using municipal water for drinking and cooking after foul-smelling and discoloured water reportedly came out of taps, raising fears of possible sewage contamination.

The affected areas include Foya, Six Pence and Marengendu Road in Ward 8, where some households have turned to boreholes while the City of Gweru investigates the reported water quality problems.

One Foya resident, who requested anonymity, said the smell immediately raised concern.

“It smelled like sewage. We could not take the risk of drinking it, so we had to look for borehole water," the resident said.

Another resident said the condition of the water had forced the household to abandon the municipal supply for drinking.

“When you open a tap expecting clean water, you instead get water that smells like sewage, we became afraid. We have stopped drinking it and are using borehole water," the resident said.

A Marengendu Road resident said residents were waiting for authorities to establish whether the water was contaminated.

“We cannot gamble with our health. We are now looking for borehole water because we do not know whether the tap water is contaminated or not," the resident said.

The reports have raised public health concerns in the affected neighbourhoods, with fears that the contaminated water can transmit disease-causing organisms associated with diarrhoea, typhoid and cholera.

However, there is currently no confirmed laboratory finding that the water was contaminated with sewage.

The City of Gweru has launched investigations into the reports, with water and sewer teams attending to reported sewer blockages and water leaks in the affected areas.

Ward 8 Councillor, Jackos Manyanga, confirmed that water samples had been collected and submitted to the council laboratory for analysis.

“The fault was prioritised ahead of others as it was suspected to be linked with poor quality of drinking water in the area,” Councilor Manyanga said.

The investigation has also been prompted by allegations that an unauthorised connection may have linked sewer infrastructure to a water line.

Manyanga cautioned residents and property owners against tampering with municipal infrastructure or engaging unqualified workers to undertake plumbing work.

“Residents should desist from tempering or connecting a sewer line into a water line,” he said.

The alleged connection has not been established as the cause of the incident, with the council's investigation and laboratory analysis expected to determine what happened.

Council teams have undertaken flushing and chlorination of the affected lines, while maintaining water pressure during repairs to minimise the possibility of sewage entering the water system.

Residents in the affected areas have been advised not to drink the municipal water pending the release of laboratory results.

A water bowser has also reportedly been deployed to provide potable water to affected households during the intervention, while some residents have resorted to boreholes.

The incident has renewed concerns over the condition of Gweru's ageing water and sewer infrastructure, where leaking pipes, sewer blockages and other infrastructure failures can increase the risk of cross-contamination if systems are compromised.