If one functioning cremator has no gas and generator back-up and should it break down, there will be no functional cremators left.
Msunduzi Municipality’s community services portfolio committee wants approval to fix six burners from one of its two cremators at the Mountain Rise crematorium.
If one functioning cremator has no gas and generator back-up and should it break down, there will be no functional cremators left, according to a community services portfolio report tabled at a recent executive committee meeting.
While the mechanical problems are dealt with, a tender will be sent out for interested parties to lease the facility.
Since the installation of new cremators in 2013, there have been many technical faults experienced during the maintenance stage of the contract due to the excessive heating caused by the ducting and the brick chimney that restricted the airflow in the cremator.
Some of the problems that have occurred include overheating of both cremators which led to the electric cables melting, steel bowing and cracking.
The loading doors were jamming during its operation and the cremation process took longer than expected. On January 16, 2021 two burners at crematorium two were decommissioned.
The report
The report stated that during a site inspection at the time, it was reported that the door of oven number two was a quarter of the way open and the mechanism was badly damaged.
Due to load shedding being active and the generator not working, the fire in the ovens pushed back up through the burner tubes melting and damaging the burners mostly beyond repair.
A supply and service contract is in place to maintain the generators, however, an uninterrupted power supply needs to be installed which can last up to two hours with circumstances such as load shedding, reads the report.
The Council and Msunduzi
The council took a resolution to lease out Mountain Rise Crematorium on March 13, last year.
Msunduzi advertised to lease the management services of the crematorium to both non-profit organisations and corporates.
However, Msunduzi cancelled the tender due to no acceptable tenders being received.
“The facility is currently utilising gas tanks with a smaller capacity. Crematorium two is non-operational but the advantage is that it has a backup generator for load shedding, a bulk gas tank and the chapel has been revamped. Once the stripping of the existing furnaces was started, it exposed even further damage to the burner,” reads the report.
It will cost the city almost R700 000 to fix the cremators. The report states that the community will suffer in terms of cremation services not being available, especially to indigent people.
Those who can afford it will go to Cato Ridge and Durban for cremations.
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Chairperson of the Msunduzi Crematorium and Cemeteries Concerned Citizens Committee
Advocate Ranjiv Nirghin, president of the Midlands Hindu Society and the chairperson of the Msunduzi Crematorium and Cemeteries Concerned Citizens Committee, said they will make sure that they meet the criteria to qualify for the management of the facility.
He said community members were concerned about the proposed tariff increase for cremation, which will increase from R2 085 to R8 875, while for the indigent, it will increase from R486 to R2 071.