As of last week, many Bloemfontein households have reported unclean or even a lack of
water. The problem has originated in the Westdene neighbourhood. People living there have made
complaints about the colour of the water as well as the presence of a pungent odour. They took to
Facebook, commenting on MyCityBloemfontein’s posts regarding the water updates.
Mangaung municipality has since released a statement on 28 November, informing the public that
they are aware of the situation. In the statement, they said that the city’s technical team was
investigating the colour of the water in Noordhoek, Arboretum and Westdene.
Mangaung wanted to assure their residents that the water was still safe to drink. The discolouration
and unpleasant smell was caused by the presence of Geosmin, a naturally occurring odour. This
phenomenon occurs in the water due to high temperatures.
Despite this claim, accounts have been noted of residents experiencing nausea and outbreaks after
consuming the water. These occurrences were in the minority, however, and can not be undeniably
linked to the state of the water.
Their statement concluded with a reminder to residents that discolouration may appear frequently
due to maintenance and ageing infrastructure.
Bloem Water, one of Bloemfontein’s main water suppliers, has also been contacted to determine if
they are taking any steps to resolve the issue. They were asked if they had the ability to supply jojo
water tanks to the neighbourhoods and if they could, where it would be.
These questions were answered by a Bloem Water employee. The response was that the ‘unclean’
water is from Maselspoort, which belongs to the Metro. The situation has nothing to do with Bloem
Water, as the treatment of that water is operated by Mangaung Metro. Additionally,
they said they do not provide bulk water to Westdene.
The employee continued to explain that any investigations into this issue needs to be done by
Mangaung Metro themselves. “Bloem Water operates and maintains its water treatment works
‘Welbedacht Dam’, which is supplying drinking water to the southern parts of Bloemfontein”.
The situation has since developed further. What started as water simply being discoloured and
pungent, has now evolved into households of different neighbourhoods being left without water
once again.
Individuals have commented on MyCityBloemfontein’s post, stating the lack of water in their
locality. The areas that reported their grievances were Langenhovenpark, Freedom Square, Olive Hill
and Universitas. At that time, some residents had been left without water for three days.
Mangaung has not released any new statements since.
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