A crippling water crisis has hit the Prince Mshiyeni Memorial Hospital in Umlazi, south of Durban, in KwaZulu-Natal.
According to patients and health staff, the hospital has gone for a week without water and this has plunged the biggest hospital in the township of over two million people into a crisis.
Some patients allege that they only get water from their relatives who bring them during their visits. Since there is no water, patients are unable to bathe and flush overflowing toilets.
Some staff members alleged that the hospital is not only facing a water crisis, but also a dire situation in the ICU as air conditioners are not working. This has left sick patients with overheating wards at the time when Durban weather is extremely hot.
As the water crisis deepens in the hospital, the Public Servants Association (PSA) said it is outraged by the ongoing and catastrophic failure to restore the water supply.
The union added that the continued collapse of basic services at this critical healthcare facility is an unforgivable act of negligence. It is also a direct threat to public health, human dignity, and workplace safety.
“The prolonged water outage has had devastating consequences, endangering patients, and healthcare workers. Life-saving procedures have been disrupted, critical medical treatments, including surgeries, wound care, and infection control measures, have been severely compromised. Patients requiring emergency care face life-threatening delays. The chances of disease outbreaks soared whilst the absence of running water has crippled sanitation efforts, increasing the likelihood of infections and respiratory illnesses.
“Neonatal, ICU, immune-compromised, and post-operative patients are particularly at risk. There is a breakdown of hygiene and infection control, toilets are overflowing, wards are unsanitary, and healthcare workers are unable to wash their hands properly, violating infection prevention protocols,” the PSA said in a statement on Friday.
It further warned that the hospital is now a breeding ground for disease, endangering staff, and patients.
“With no water for sterilisation, medical equipment cannot be thoroughly cleaned, forcing staff to operate under dangerous and substandard conditions. Laboratories and diagnostic services have been severely affected, delaying critical test results and proper patient management.
“Patients, including pregnant women, newborns, and the elderly, are forced to endure inhumane conditions. Denying access to basic water is a violation of constitutional rights, including the right to dignity, healthcare, and a safe working environment.”
The KwaZulu-Natal Department of Health led by MEC Nomagugu Simelane-Mngadi was contacted about the matter and it had not commented by the time of publication. The comment of the department will be added once received.
