Woman's desperate crawl through drain raises safety concerns at Epping construction site
Woman crawls nearly 1km through drain after fall at Epping construction site, rescued by emergency services.
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A woman crawled through a stormwater drain for nearly a kilometre after falling into what is believed to be a cordoned-off construction site in Epping on Wednesday night, raising questions about safety at the site.
Emergency services were called at about 7.30pm after residents in Bonteheuwel heard the woman shouting for help from inside a drain near Assegaai and Amandel streets.
According to the City's Fire and Rescue Services spokesperson, Jermaine Carelse, crews from Epping were initially dispatched to one location before being redirected to Bofors Circle near the railway line, where the woman was found trapped underground.
“The incident location indicates that PRASA is the landowner,” Carelse said.
He said the woman had fallen into the drain, estimated to be between 2 and 2.5 metres deep, and sustained a suspected fractured ankle.
“She then proceeded to crawl towards light coming from another drain.”
Firefighters, working with Metro Rescue, devised a pulley system to extricate her from the confined space.
"Crews lowered a ladder into the drain and donned self-contained breathing apparatus due to the hazardous atmosphere before securing the woman in a sling and hoisting her to safety.
"By about 8:15pm, she had been loaded into an ambulance and transported to Tygerberg Hospital for further medical treatment."
Ward councillor, Angus McKenzie, said the woman had gained access to a section of a PRASA construction site that had already been cordoned off.
“The section had already been secured as part of the construction site. Unfortunately, the woman managed to make her way underneath the barrier and entered the drainage system,” he said.
“She managed to move through the drain system for about a kilometre to another opening where she was able to call for help,” he said.
McKenzie added that this was the first incident of its kind reported in the area and said the woman had fractured her ankle but was in a stable condition in hospital.
He also praised residents who responded after hearing her cries for help, alerting authorities and helping ensure a rapid emergency response.
Prasa spokesperson Zinobulali Mihisaid preliminary information indicates that the drain is located between Bonteheuwel and Netreg stations.
Mihi said: “It is understood that the area had been covered with plastic zinc at the time. At this stage, we are in the process of verifying the exact asset ownership and responsibility, based on the nature and contents of the drain.
“We have referred the matter to the relevant internal departments to confirm whether the affected area falls within Prasa’s property and responsibility or the City of Cape Town; the condition and adequacy of the securing measures in place at the time; and how access may have been gained to the cordoned-off section.
“Once this assessment has been concluded, the responsible division will be in a better position to provide clarity on accountability as well as any additional safety interventions that may be implemented to prevent similar incidents in future.”