ONDANGWA - Employees of the Ondangwa Town Council have started cleaning water channels and culverts to mitigate flood risks during the rainy season.

Town council spokesperson Petrina Shitalangaho-Mutikisha told Nampa the exercise started in December, and is continuing.

She said areas in need of cleaning are identified through random inspections and reports from residents.

“The water channels were created to guide the water from houses or from high to low ground, but you often find residents using them as dumping sites,” she observed.

Shitalangaho-Mutikisha said the rubbish residents dump in the channels causes blockages, which leads to the flooding of properties if not addressed in time.

She said another challenge experienced is the flow of water into the sewer system through rodding eyes (a section of the pipes) or other openings made by residents, which put pressure on the sewer system, as it was not designed to accommodate such inflow. This leads to pumps breaking down, she added.

Shitalangaho-Mutikisha said the water entering the system through the rodding eyes has sand and other waste materials, resulting in pumps breaking down.

She stressed that replacing parts is costly, time-consuming and inconveniencing residents as the pumps are expected to run 24/7. - Nampa