Authorities respond to ongoing water crisis in Knysna

The Knysna Municipality has activated its Joint Operations Centre (JOC) to coordinate a multi-agency response to the town’s worsening water crisis, with thousands of residents in at least nine wards left with no or limited access to water for weeks.

The JOC was formally established on Wednesday under the Disaster Management Act and remains operational as authorities scramble to stabilise supply and manage relief efforts.

The coordinated response includes support from the provincial government, the Garden Route District Municipality Disaster Management, Knysna SAPS, Fire & Rescue Services, the Knysna Infrastructure Group, and civil organisations such as Gift of the Givers.

Two water tankers are stationed in Rheenendal, while 14 trucks in total are operating across Knysna daily between 7am and 11pm, delivering water to residents in defined zones.

A prototype water delivery schedule was implemented late on Thursday, assigning tankers to designated reservoir areas, each identified by registration number and monitored through daily check-ins at the Knysna Fire Station.

These tankers are disinfected regularly as a safety measure.

Despite intermittent access in certain green-highlighted zones, many areas including Hornlee, White Location, Rhobololo, Jood-se-Kamp, Dam-se-Bos, and 7de Laan remain dependent on tanker deliveries.

Two trucks continue to serve Rheenendal, where overnight pumping is expected to bring stability to the local system.

The municipality added that repairs are ongoing in the broader Knysna region, with the installation of new pumps scheduled for Saturday and full stabilisation anticipated within three days thereafter.

SANParks, though not formally part of the JOC, has deployed two fire trucks from the Garden Route National Park to assist in water distribution.

Gift of the Givers has responded to urgent calls from councillors and municipal officials, sending two water tankers from the Eastern Cape and 5000 bottles of drinking water from Cape Town to supply health clinics, schools, and old-age homes.

According to reports, some communities have been without water for up to four weeks.

Gift of the Givers project coordinator Ali Sablay said: "Desperate calls for assistance by community leaders, councillors, and the Knysna Local Municipality have been made for an urgent intervention as 9 of 11 wards have no or limited access to water supplies.

"Gift of the Givers has deployed two water tankers from the Eastern Cape and an urgent delivery of 5000 bottles of water from Cape Town to health clinics, schools, and old age homes around the Knysna area."

Knysna mayor Thando Matika thanked all partners involved in the emergency relief efforts, acknowledging the critical role played by government and private sector entities.

“We are grateful for the substantial support received from the Western Cape Government and the Garden Route District Municipality,” said Matika.

“We also wish to acknowledge the invaluable assistance from the Knysna Infrastructure Group and The Greater Knysna Business Chamber, who have both come in at a critical time to strengthen our response.”

However, the crisis has drawn sharp political criticism.

Democratic Alliance MP and Knysna Constituency Head, Ryan Smith, accused Matika and the ANC/EFF/PA/PBI coalition of gross negligence.

Smith called for an immediate restoration timeline, a municipality-wide infrastructure audit, the reprioritisation of municipal funds, and the use of public-private partnerships to finance water infrastructure renewal.

Cape Times