Photo: Curtis Bennett

A resident of Rutland doesn't believe the city is taking a potential safety hazard seriously.

Curtis Bennett said somebody has been removing storm sewer grates from along the edge of the roadway, creating a potential hazard for vehicles and pedestrians.

Bennett said he has marked the hazards with safety cones and contacted the City of Kelowna, but noted the situation was still not resolved by Friday afternoon.

"One of the grates in front of Pearson (elementary school) was removed weeks ago," Bennett wrote.

"There was another one missing on Leathead and Hollywood roads. I stuck a big cone in it, and it was not covered for days. (the cone is still sitting there from weeks ago). There were others missing along Hollywood Road, this year and last, even right by the mall, seniors residences, etc."

Bennett said something needs to be done before someone is seriously hurt, or worse.

He believes the city should secure the covers somehow to prevent hazards.

For its part, the city said it does take these matters seriously, and rectifies them as soon as they are notified.

Kevin Van Vliet said he was unaware of any uncovered storm sewers at the moment that had not been dealt with.

"If I know where it is, we'll make sure it gets a new catch basin grill on, or fished out of the hole where it probably is," Van Vliet told Castanet.

As for securing them, Van Vliet said the city does yearly maintenance in the catch basins, so securing them is not an option.