By By Marcus Motshegwa: Communication Specialist for Water and Sanitation
The Department of Water and Sanitation and its entities are concerned about incidents of drowning of children at water and sanitation construction infrastructure sites that are closer to communities.
The Department urges parents to discourage children from playing at construction sites or the trenches, particularly that have been filled with water. There has been several incidents that led to loss of life to children who are playing at an active construction site.
Even though the contractors working at the sites demarcate the area and take precautionary steps to prevent unauthorised entry at the sites, people and most importantly children still find their way to cross the boundaries and enter the sites.
The latest incident happened at Kutlwanong, near Odendaalsrus in the Free State, where a boy aged between 10 and 11 was swimming in an excavation filled with water at a construction site. The boy unfortunately got stuck in the mud and died as a result of drowning.
In Duduza township of Ekurhuleni Metropolitan in Gauteng province, two grade 5 pupils aged 9 and 11 were found dead in a pond near a construction site. Sadly, precious lives have been lost at an early stage after gaining unlawful access to construction sites. This is a sad occurrence, it is unfortunate that some children are drawn to construction sites as stimulating places to play. This is not acceptable and should be discouraged at all costs.
Some of the community members who suffer injuries or drown at the construction sites gain unauthorised entry with the aim of stealing and vandalising the infrastructure currently in construction.
In some areas, the Department manages water pumping through canals systems, which are also wide enough to even drown an adult person due to water pressure volume.
The Department of Water and Sanitation therefore makes an urgent appeal to parents to warn children of a danger of playing at the construction sites that are still under way. Apart from only children, members of the public are also warned of the possibility of sustaining serious injuries from materials found at an active construction site. Open trenches also pose a hazardous risk at the sites and should be avoided.
Members of the public should at all times stay away from active construction sites and should abide by rules stipulated with regard to entry or movement during the construction at the site.
Stay safe and stay away from the construction sites. While these projects are vital to improving public infrastructure and service delivery, they also carry risks, especially for children.
