Prof Colleen Aldous: Hammanskraal was a warning. Why did Tshwane supply unsafe water again?

When unchlorinated, sewage-polluted water reached Bronkhorstspruit homes for three weeks, over 400 people - mostly young children - fell ill. The City of Tshwane failed to issue a timely warning, exposing critical operational and communication breakdowns. As independent investigations examine this dangerous breakdown, the crisis highlights an urgent truth for every South African: public safety requires reliable water treatment and immediate, transparent warnings before failure reaches the tap..By Prof Colleen Aldous .When hundreds of people in Bronkhorstspruit became ill with diarrhoea and stomach cramps, the investigation uncovered a fact that should concern every South African household. Water had left the municipal treatment works without chlorination for three weeks. Residents had not been warned promptly that it was unsafe.In a joint statement issued on 19 October, the national departments of Health and Water and Sanitation, Gauteng's government and the City of Tshwane reported 408 cases of gastrointestinal illness between 7 and 18 October. Most patients were younger than four. No deaths had been reported at that point. Subsequent local reporting put the case count at 433 on 21 October. These figures are dated snapshots of a continuing investigation.The Department of Water and Sanitation found that difficulties with Tshwane's chlorine supplier resulted in water from the Bronkhorstspruit Water Treatment Works not being chlorinated between 24 September and 14 October. The works draws from a river that, according to the department, is badly polluted by sewage from failing upstream wastewater works and Tshwane sewage pump stations. Investigators also found that pumps, sand filters, and other equipment at the waterworks were not functioning. The treatment barrier failed in a system already under pressure from polluted raw water.Tests on 14 October found extremely high levels of E. coli and total coliform bacteria in water leaving the works and in two reservoirs. These organisms indicate faecal contamination and unsafe water quality. The National Institute for Communicable Diseases found norovirus, Campylobacter and Shigella in three of the first four patient stool specimens analysed. The combination of clinical and water test results supports a common water-supply source, while further sampling is needed to determine the contribution of individual pathogens. Cholera bacteria were not found in those limited stool samples, and a cholera outbreak has not been confirmed. The government's statement sets out the laboratory findings and their limits..The investigation must now establish when officials knew that chlorine supplies had failed, what routine water tests showed during those 21 days, and who had authority to stop distribution or warn the public. It must also explain why no contingency supply was available for a chemical essential to keeping the water safe.The joint investigation says Tshwane failed to warn affected residents that the water should not be used for drinking, cooking, washing or bathing, even after boiling. It cites the compulsory water services standards issued in 2025. The city closed the works on 14 October, restored chlorine supply by 15 October and resumed supplying water into the network on 16 October, while telling residents it was still unsuitable for drinking. Restoring a chemical feed does not immediately establish that all water in a distribution network is safe.The city's warning of 20 October instructed residents supplied by the affected system to use tap water only for flushing toilets until further notice. Water tankers drawing from the Cullinan treatment works were deployed as an emergency source. Households should follow the current local notice, rather than assume that boiling the affected tap water makes it suitable for all uses. The emergency supply needs dependable delivery, clear collection points and continued testing, especially for families caring for young children..In 2023, BizNews reported on the failures of water infrastructure exposed by the Hammanskraal cholera outbreak. The comparison should be made carefully. Hammanskraal was a confirmed cholera outbreak, but the original source of infection had not been located when the Presidency reported on it that May (2023). Bronkhorstspruit is a gastrointestinal illness cluster associated with a documented interruption in water treatment. Both events raise the same governance question- can residents trust that unsafe water will be detected and that they will be told in time to protect themselves?There is an economic cost as well as a clinical one. Families must find alternative water and care for sick children. Clinics and hospitals absorb a preventable surge in patients. The municipality must mobilise tankers, testing and repairs after routine protection has failed. The extent of those costs has not yet been published. They should be included in the investigation, alongside the costs of maintaining reliable water treatment and a reserve supply of chlorine.The Department of Water and Sanitation has asked the Water Research Commission to conduct independent testing and investigate how contaminated water reached households. Its report was expected by 28 October. On 22 October, the Public Protector confirmed a separate investigation into allegations of maladministration and improper conduct. These inquiries should establish the operational chronology, publish the relevant water-quality results and examine procurement, plant maintenance, escalation and public communication. Tshwane should set out who was responsible for each decision and what safeguards will prevent a recurrence. An investigation has begun but it has yet to make findings about individual responsibility.The immediate task is to restore and demonstrate a safe water supply. The longer task is to make the warning system work before patients arrive at the hospital. Communities should be able to see water-quality results, understand what an unsafe result means, and receive an immediate, practical notice when a treatment process fails. Bronkhorstspruit shows the cost of leaving that responsibility until after people become ill..Sign up for your early morning brew of the BizNews Insider to keep you up to speed with the content that matters. The newsletter will land in your inbox every morning on weekdays. Register here.Support South Africa's bastion of independent journalism, offering balanced insights on investments, business, and the political economy, by joining BizNews Premium. Register here.If you prefer WhatsApp for updates, sign up to the BizNews channel here.

Prof Colleen Aldous: Hammanskraal was a warning. Why did Tshwane supply unsafe water again?

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