‘We asked why they were doing this’

It’s the kind of video that will make you sick to your stomach. A municipal sewer truck parked next to a stormwater drain in South Africa has become the center of a fierce controversy after a video showing its actions went viral.

Krugersdorp News reported He said the footage sparked outrage from residents who believed they were witnessing illegal dumping in broad daylight.

video It was filmed by local resident Neels Jooste, who, along with a local security guard, confronted the workers at the scene.

“We asked them to explain why they did this and identify themselves, but they didn’t,” Jooste said.

Mogale City Local Municipality immediately denied any wrongdoing. A spokesman said workers were at risk of a sewer blockage after rock debris blocked the tanker’s suction pipe. She claimed the overflow seen in the video came from the blocked line upstream and stressed that “no effluent was discharged from the tanker.”

But for many residents, this incident is just one symptom of a much larger disease. The city has been plagued by a long-running sewage crisis that has been brewing for more than a decade.

A. report Fact from Africa found that by the end of 2024, half of Mogale City’s 22 sewage pump stations are faulty and two-thirds of its water treatment plants are not working properly. This systemic failure threatens the nearby UN World Heritage Site, the Cradle of Humanity.

This problem does not only occur in one city. This is a global problem.

In Taiwan, authorities have uncovered a massive scheme in which 15 people are accused of dumping more than 1,100 tons of waste into city sewers. A Texas resident used his phone to capture images of a Texas Pride Septic truck allegedly dumping waste into the sewer, prompting an investigation.

On the other side of the Atlantic, Britain’s environmental regulators are facing a lawsuit for failing to stop water companies from polluting waterways. One of these companies, Severn Trent, was recently fined over $2.4 million for discharging raw sewage into a river.

Public anger and disappointment are clear. as one YouTube The commentator said, “We should consider our waters sacred, absolutely sacred, protect them and use them with respect and gratitude.”

Another, capturing the deep sense of loss, asked: “I wonder what the ancestors thought about this? From Cradle to Septic tank.”

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