A leaking municipal water reservoir near Hudson Park High has repeatedly damaged the school’s fields. The school has been prevented from holding tournaments and collapsing walls around the East London property are a danger to pupils. Hudson Park cannot hold sports events on its A field, and it has also cost the school about R150,000 to repair damaged fields.
After two years of leaks, there remains little hope that the reservoir, which supplies water to areas such as Vincent and Nahoon, will be fixed. The damage included a wall adjoining the reservoir property collapsing on top of the school’s cricket practice nets, which had to be rebuilt. When the Dispatch visited the school on Tuesday, despite the area having been repaired and cleaned by the school’s maintenance staff, the cricket nets were still unusable because a slurry of mud had been created by the ongoing water leaks.
The upkeep and cleaning of the reservoir is said to be in the school’s hands as well, with the Buffalo City municipality doing little to assist. Andrew Lake, school governing body member and the chair for school infrastructure, said the issue had long been reported to the municipality. “The issue with the reservoir started a few years ago and has been reported annually, however, the situation has worsened significantly over the past year.” Lake blamed the leaks on the lack of proper and ongoing maintenance and said the constant cancellation of rugby and cricket matches had stunted player growth.
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