Wastewater from public bathhouses contaminates foodstuffs at CMB Market
The Queenmother of the Cocoa Marketing Board (CMB) Market in Accra, Nana Afriyie, has called on city authorities to regulate the activities of public bathhouses in and around the market to prevent an outbreak of diseases.
According to her, the public bathhouses in the market have a very poor drainage system; therefore, some of the water ends up going into storage areas to contaminate some food products.
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“This is a health hazard as the wastewater results in flooding as soapy water and other waste materials from the facilities have no receptive tanks to accommodate them,” she said.
The CMB queenmother, also known as Nana Prepre, expressed her frustration when The Mirror visited the market last weekend to ascertain the state of bathhouses in the market.
She was not happy that water from those facilities were not properly disposed of, and that continued to be a source of worry as the flooding destroyed storage areas in the market.
“There is no proper drainage system here. When it rains, both the rainwater and water from these facilities get in here. People go to these bathhouses to do their laundry as well, so they come to dump the water here. The scent alone is unbearable. When it’s not raining it’s a bit manageable,” she lamented.
The Mirror’s visit
The Mirror observed that there was a continuous flow of soapy water in some corners of the market and a section of the public was doing laundry in front of some of those public bathhouses.
These people, The Mirror also observed, poured the wastewater down into an unstructured drain which found its way into the market.
It was common to see soapy water running beneath some sacks of food items packed on the floor for sale. Similarly, the reporter spotted a drain suspected to be coming from some of these bathhouses running through some sections of the market while the traders went about doing brisk business.
Some of the market women who spoke to The Mirror equally expressed their concern on the issue.
Most of these women trade mainly in foodstuffs such as cassava dough, fruits and vegetables, and they feared that the wastewater might contaminate foodstuff and cause health problems.
They, therefore, called on the market authorities to help curb the situation in the market.
Market chairman
The Chairman of the market, Mr Kwame Koomson, complained that most of the people who operated the bathrooms around the market had no proper drainage system, hence the market was almost always flooded.
He also explained that the market equally lacked a proper drainage system and in times of floods, the market women had their items washed away into the gutters, adding that it took some time before the water in those drains subsided.
“The place gets heavily flooded whenever it rains and that is due to the force of water coming up from these bathhouses at Abuja (a place around the CMB Market). Traders lose their wares whenever it happens. It is, therefore, necessary for the authorities to construct pavements and drains, especially at the lorry station, just like they did for the Tema Station,” he stated.
