Important South African care facility severely disrupted after a large sinkhole

The Centurion Hospice, a vital community nonprofit, is steadily working to recover after a massive sinkhole severely disrupted its operations.

When the ground collapsed just meters away, swallowing homes and rupturing key infrastructure, the hospice was flooded and forced to close its inpatient unit, marking the start of a long road to recovery that continues years later.

It drove the organisation into severe financial debt, leading to patient displacement and the retrenchment of most of its staff.

The hospice provides palliative and psycho-social care in all areas of Centurion, and as far as Midrand, Monument Park, Olievenhoutbosch, and Pretoria West.

“We’re finding our feet again,” said Dorothy Wye, manager at the Centurion Palliative and Care Centre/Hospice. “But my concern, of course, is if this sinkhole is growing and it’s moving towards our property, what do we do?”

Centurion, a town located in the City of Tshwane, is experiencing a severe sinkhole crisis, which is causing widespread destruction, road and building closures.

Currently, the Gauteng town has 64 logged sinkholes that require the municipality’s intervention, due to its underlying geology, specifically the presence of dolomite rock formations.

Speaking to NewsDay, Wye shared a harrowing account of the challenges faced and the difficult journey toward recovery for the Centurion Hospice because of a nearby sinkhole.

Around 2022, city officials placed yellow barriers around a wet dip in the road, which they continuously expanded. This dip eventually became so large that only a single road remained around it. 

The actual sinkhole occurred after significant rain, swallowing three houses in the process, and damaging water and sewage lines.

This caused a crisis for the Hospice, with immediate and crippling accessibility issues. Wye explained that the sinkhole created an “obstruction” that meant “people couldn’t get to the hospice”. 

This was followed by a horrific period of repeated sewage floods, hitting the nearby hospice five times in three months, until a walk bridge was built over the sinkhole and the sewage and water lines were raised.

“All the sewage water came through our hospital. On the fifth time, it was so bad we had to put crates down so they could walk,” said Wye.

The Hospice relies on donations and sales from its coffee shop and second-hand shops on the premises to operate.

However, the resulting “stench was horrible,” forcing not only a loss of income from donations and the store, but the coffee shop was forced to discard all its food.

The environmental disaster quickly escalated into a patient care crisis. Patients, many in their last days, had to be moved to Sun Gardens Hospice and other places. 

When the previous board eventually closed the hospital, several patients were sent through to Sun Gardens Hospice, and 21 home-based care patients were referred to other facilities. 

Crippled financially

The financial toll on the non-profit organisation was immediate and profound. It cost a lot of money to clean the premises, which were in a “sea of faeces,” explained Wye.

Wye lamented the lack of external financial assistance, stating there was not a cent to help clean up.

Compounding the problem, the hospice receives “no funds from the government” for its income, relying solely on donations from its shop. 

Yet, this vital revenue stream became “a dwindling income” because of the sinkhole.

The dire financial situation forced drastic measures. The hospice “couldn’t even pay the staff,” said Wye, which led to large-scale retrenchments. 

The workforce plummeted dramatically from about 56 staff to eight skeleton staff. 

The coffee shop, unable to sustain itself, closed, and its accumulated debt reached around R1.6 million. 

Adding insult to injury, the City of Tshwane issued a “very nice bill of almost R300,000” for a water account dating back to 2019. 

This bill was based on an average reading because the meter was never read, and the hospice was charged on a business account and not on NPO.

Despite a R102,000 credit and large-scale payments, an outstanding debt of R150,000 remains to the municipality.

The threat of the sinkhole remains, with Wye expressing concern that “if this sinkhole is growing and it’s moving towards our property and they evacuate us,” like they did the three houses across the street, what the future holds for them.

The hospice owns a piece of ground across the road, donated by the City of Tshwane in 1997, which might serve as their “only option” if they are forced to move.

The metro said that it stabilised the hole with piling, while it addressed other services affected by the hole.

Efforts have been made to address the sinkhole, most recently with the construction of a bridge that holds sewage and water lines, while a permanent wall was erected around the sinkhole.

Centurion Hospice’s future plans

Despite the immense setbacks, the hospice is actively rebuilding. 

A new board was elected in January, and Wye took over as manager in February. While the coffee shop remains closed and rented out for a year to generate income, the main shop has never been closed. 

Public perception, which had been that “hospice is closed”, is also now improving, with donations seeing an uptick.

Looking ahead, the hospice plans to transform part of the vacant hospital into a medical centre to generate funds.

There is already interest from a wound clinic, a dermatologist, and a doctor who currently provides 15 days of free staff assistance monthly for hospice patients.

Wye expressed optimism about the care component’s reopening. However, the hospice still faces R1.2 million of debt it needs to tackle.

“This is such a critical facility. So many people rely on us and we are doing everything to ensure that we keep providing our care to them,” said Wye.

Amidst these challenges, the hospice benefits from local support. The hospice continues its fundraising efforts, including monthly markets, and is even planning an art auction with an impressive collection of donated artwork.

Ward councillor David Farquharson said the “devastation of the sinkhole is heartbreaking.”

“The hospice has been put under severe financial strain. Please support so it can get back to its full functionality.”