Municipal truck crushes boundary wall
A Rocklands family has submitted claim forms to the City of Cape Town after a council dirt truck overturned and crushed their boundary wall.
Resident Charles Saunders had just told his neighbour to come across the road, from his home to join their conversation, when the solid waste truck came and overturned on that spot on Tuesday February 14.
He had his back towards the wreck but turned around when he heard screaming.
The driver and two of his passengers, all council workers, got out of the truck before it tumbled on the boundary wall and crashed into the Quimpo family’s garage door.
Mr Saunders said one of the truck’s passengers was injured when he landed on the ground, from jumping out of harm’s way.
He lives with his wife, her sister, brother and two children.
“Luckily I was alone at home and no one was in the garage,” he said.
The Quimpo family has been living in the house for more 40 years.
The municipality closed the garage with corrugated sheets and scaffolding poles to secure the property.
Maxine Bezuidenhout, spokesperson for Traffic Services, said an officer was dispatched at 10.53am to the corner of Southern Cross and Melkweg, Rocklands, last week.
She said one person was slightly injured and the roadway was obstructed for a few hours.
Mr Saunders’ sister-in-law Shereen Mathee said that it has been a week since the accident and “the building is still as they left it”.
She informed Rocklands councillor Ashley Potts, for Ward 81, that the structure the City put up was not adequate.
He is working closely with Ms Mathee to get the repairs done as soon as possible.
“With the winds since last week, the broken wall is breaking bit by bit.
“The children in the area are now picking up the loose stones and throwing them around,” she said.
Ms Mathee, the oldest sibling in the Quimpo family, said that she had completed the forms for the City’s insurance, and now they were awaiting feedback.