Durban - Residents of a 15-storey block in Morningside evacuated in panic yesterday morning as a powerful spray burst out of a water pipe, destroying a wall at the foot of the building.
A torrent of water picked up mud as it flowed from Moreton Hall, on a hilltop, into the parking area of the neighbouring block of flats, poured through a green lung and ended up in the driveway of another complex.
Word spread on WhatsApp that Moreton Hall, in Peter Mokaba Road North, was in danger of collapsing.
“I was standing at the window on the sixth floor when I suddenly saw water gushing out below,” said resident Jenelle Aniruth.
“The entire front wall and gate collapsed. I grabbed a few things and we all started to get out, using the stairs. We wouldn’t take a chance with the lift.”
Another resident saw the water spraying from the eighth floor and made for the basement parking to drive out in her car.
“I was very scared,” she said.
“The water I drove through was already covering my tyres. I was worried about the force of it getting stronger.”
The Fire Department and other municipal services arrived and residents, who had fled their homes, said they hoped that by the end of the day the city’s engineers would have inspected the building and allowed them back in.
At about 5pm, residents were permitted back into the building but only through areas that had been inspected and declared safe.
A trustee and resident, Yusuf Vawda, said he understood that the burst had been caused by a damaged sprinkler that had washed sand away.
Resident Trent Powell noted that there had been excavation work in part of the garage basement.
He said that “three or four months ago” debris had collapsed on a car.
Powell said the evacuation had been a spontaneous reaction rather than an order.
Another resident, from the first floor, added: “We heard the security guards in the street screaming and signalling to people up in the building to come out. I just grabbed my phone and came out with nothing else.”
A woman who rushed home after being alerted on WhatsApp spoke of her neighbour having had a panic attack.
Moreton Hall has 13 floors with flats and two basement floors.
At about 3pm, a maintenance vehicle with a front shovel was scooping up mud from the complex it had washed into.
eThekwini Municipality spokesperson Lindiwe Khuzwayo said yesterday afternoon that the city’s fire department had attended the incident and found the side ramp to the garages had collapsed.
“It appeared that some construction work was being done to the property. We further isolated the water supply to the broken sprinkler system pipework. The building remains evacuated until the arrival of a structural engineer.
“The main property needs to be assessed and its integrity confirmed.”
There were no injuries reported.
The Independent on Saturday