The newly launched LIFT Airline landing at the King Shaka International Airport. Picture: Tumi Pakkies/African News Agency (ANA)
Social media users did not let things slide and expressed their concern on water wastage after LIFT uploaded a video of its maiden flight to Durban landing at King Shaka International Airport.
In the celebratory video playing Beyonce’s hit song “Cuff It”, water cannons are used to shower LIFT’s debut flight from Johannesburg to Durban as it cruises down the runway as part of a salute.
@liftairline Howzit, Durban! 🤟 #southafrica #durban #capetown #johannesburg #tiktok #tiktoksa #tiktoksouthafrica #mzansi #fyp #fypシ #foryou ♬ CUFF IT - Beyoncé
LIFT launched its highly requested route between Durban and Johannesburg on October 26 and now offers scheduled flights between the City of Gold and Africa’s playground.
Although some TikTok users congratulated Lift on its launch, some users expressed concern over the amount of water used in the celebration when some parts of Durban were still without water after the April floods.
One user who goes by the name of Anesh commented: “Tongaat gt no water and they waisting like that.”
Another user, AF, shot to Lift’s defence and said: “Everyone complaining about the water but drives in clean cars, go tell the car wash companies first.”
LIFT responded: “PS: The water used is responsibly harvested from non-drinkable, grey water. No wastage on our watch!”
Tongaat, which is just 15 minutes away from the airport, has faced severe water shortages since the catastrophic floods in April, with some communities having experienced water shortages for close to 200 days.
On the day of LIFT’s launch, eThekwini Mayor Mxolisi Kaunda held a briefing at oThongathi Waterworks Treatment Plant and announced that construction work on the plant had been completed ahead of schedule and has since been commissioned.
The plant had been extensively damaged during the floods which left many residents without water.
“From tomorrow, October 27, the municipality will embark on the eagerly anticipated stage of recommissioning the plant which will see residents receiving water from their taps. This will include testing the quality of water to ensure that it meets all safety requirements,” said Kaunda.