Sinkholes are fast appearing all over Welkom, and are posing a real danger to the community and businesses alike.
At the corner of Longroad and Herminia Road a collapsed storm water culvert is systamatically getting larger, and the resulting sinkhole is threatening nearby roads and buildings.
This sinkhole is situated within a residential property, and the home owners fear their home will eventually disappear into the hole.
A resident living near the property says that in November 2022, the concrete roof slab of the underground storm water channel collapsed.
The channel is about 3m underground and lies within the erf of 166 Longroad.
He believes the integrity of the steel reinforcing in the cement has more than likely been compromised, and this is therefore weakening the cement; and then it gives way, due to the heavy weight of all the soil above the slab.
They have discovered that this channel is collapsing in both directions, north to Longroad, and south to Romeo Street.
The ditch is almost 3m deep, up to 5m wide and 55m long. It is less than 5m from Romeo Street and less than 40m from Longroad.
“The big concern at this stage is that there is definitely something wrong with the underground structure, and that
it could now collapse anywhere.
“Longroad carries a lot of traffic, and sometimes heavy traffic, and if it collapses under Longroad or even Romeo Street, people could lose their lives.”
■ Recently Vista reported on the two sinkholes in Stateway, on the traffic island in front of EconoFoods (they are fast encroaching on the road), and the two massive ones on the border of the St Andrew’s School hostels.
Residents are concerned that nothing corrective is being done.
A resident told Vista that the Longroad sinkhole reminds her of the disasterous situation that happened in Carltonville when a sinkhole collapse claimed lives.
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