RESIDENTS from Amalinda said the constant, thick smoke caused by daily fires at the nearby dumpsite was affecting their health and their pockets.
Charmaine Mel, who has lived in the area for 20 years, said her family had suffered since the fires started. However, the situation worsened this week.
“My son and my husband are both asthmatic, which means they struggle with breathing already as it is. The smoke just adds to that strain.”
She said her son had to visit the doctor this week due to the smoke, while her husband suffered from a chest infection.
She said she suspected the fire was caused by the residents from the informal settlement at the bottom of Stoney Drift, where the dump is situated.
“What I don’t understand is that we call the firefighters, they come and put out the fire and, after two or three days, the fire starts again,” Mel said, adding she suspects it might be linked to electricity cable theft.
Resident Lola van der Merwe, who lives in President Street which is directly behind the dumpsite, said she regularly had difficulty breathing, and had been living on antibiotics since the fires started.
“My husband and I both have sinus infections, and the smoke was found to be the main cause,” said Van der Merwe.
She said she also suspected the residents from around the dumpsite were the cause.
Lorraine Roos, also a resident, said everyone in her family had been suffering.
“My daughter is a teenager, and she is asthmatic, so she has been using a pump. Now I have been forced to buy an air cleanser because the smoke comes into the house and causes a stink everywhere.
“I have had to change my curtains twice this week because of that, and nobody does anything. I have had days when I’ll be working in the garden, then I get serious chest pains,” said Roos.
Diane Marshall, from the same street, said her husband had a heart ailment and could not afford this type of discomfort.
“Just recently he had a heart operation, and his breathing is assisted by an oxygen tank. My grandchild lives with me because his mother works and he is asthmatic. This makes their lives very difficult,” Marshall said.
At the time of going to print yesterday, Buffalo City Metro had not responded to questions regarding the burning dumpsite. — ziphon@dispatch.co.za
Dumpsite fires put strain on health
RESIDENTS from Amalinda said the constant, thick smoke caused by daily fires at the nearby dumpsite was affecting their health and their pockets.
Charmaine Mel, who has lived in the area for 20 years, said her family had suffered since the fires started. However, the situation worsened this week.
“My son and my husband are both asthmatic, which means they struggle with breathing already as it is. The smoke just adds to that strain.”
She said her son had to visit the doctor this week due to the smoke, while her husband suffered from a chest infection.
She said she suspected the fire was caused by the residents from the informal settlement at the bottom of Stoney Drift, where the dump is situated.
“What I don’t understand is that we call the firefighters, they come and put out the fire and, after two or three days, the fire starts again,” Mel said, adding she suspects it might be linked to electricity cable theft.
Resident Lola van der Merwe, who lives in President Street which is directly behind the dumpsite, said she regularly had difficulty breathing, and had been living on antibiotics since the fires started.
“My husband and I both have sinus infections, and the smoke was found to be the main cause,” said Van der Merwe.
She said she also suspected the residents from around the dumpsite were the cause.
Lorraine Roos, also a resident, said everyone in her family had been suffering.
“My daughter is a teenager, and she is asthmatic, so she has been using a pump. Now I have been forced to buy an air cleanser because the smoke comes into the house and causes a stink everywhere.
“I have had to change my curtains twice this week because of that, and nobody does anything. I have had days when I’ll be working in the garden, then I get serious chest pains,” said Roos.
Diane Marshall, from the same street, said her husband had a heart ailment and could not afford this type of discomfort.
“Just recently he had a heart operation, and his breathing is assisted by an oxygen tank. My grandchild lives with me because his mother works and he is asthmatic. This makes their lives very difficult,” Marshall said.
At the time of going to print yesterday, Buffalo City Metro had not responded to questions regarding the burning dumpsite. — ziphon@dispatch.co.za
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