EACH time rains hit Durban, a woman from a KwaMashu kasi prays that it doesn't pour.
This is because for several years, Mary Shabalala from P Section in KwaMashu, north of Durban, has been affected by the rainwater.
It doesn't go straight into her house on its own, but it comes from a huge drain that is right behind her house.
The drain belongs to the KwaMashu Community Healthcare Centre, which is right behind her house.
Mary said each time there is heavy rain, and because the drain doesn't get cleaned properly, it fills up with water that ends up inside her house.
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There is grass and sand inside the drain, it then blocks the water from going through and it becomes a dam full of water which ends up spilling into her house.
The recent heavy rain that hit Durban affected Mary terribly as most of her furniture and concrete fence was destroyed. The furniture that was destroyed is estimated to be worth over R100 000.
She said over countless times she has engaged with the clinic's management, but they never pay attention to her.
"This is painful because my house was built in the area before the clinic was built. So, I think when the first incident happened, they should have realised they needed to do something about the drain. The fact that it keeps getting blocked shows they are not taking care of it properly," said Mary.
She said the clinic should pay for her damaged furniture and fence because if it weren't for their drain, she wouldn't have been affected this badly.
Daily Sun sent an enquiry to the KZN Department of Health.
Spokesman Nathi Olifant said the department cannot intervene in this matter.
"It would seem that while the drainage infrastructure caters for us, it would appear its maintenance lies either with Public Works or eThekwini Roads and stormwater," he said.
