Illegal connections cut off
Langaville – Illegal electricity connections have been disconnected in Langaville Extension Six, following an operation that was conducted by the EMPD Cable Theft Unit, SAPS and Electrical Department recently.
During the operation, wires were stripped from underground by municipal workers and the EMPD Cable Theft Unit, and residents were warned of the dangers of these illegal connections.
Joe Motuba, of the Energy Department in Brakpan, says the operation was conducted after some of the residents from the same community sent a petition to the department, saying they are subjected to too many power outages.
It was established that part of the problem was due to the many illegal connections in the area, so the department assisted in solving the problem.
“It is very unsafe to have all these illegal connections, as they cause a lot of fatalities,” Motuba warns.
“It is also a huge revenue loss to the municipality.”
The EMPD says the illegal connections are theft of infrastructure from the municipality and, at the same time, very dangerous, as most of the time, they find that wires are not connected properly and are live; when it rains the children play barefoot and can end up being electrocuted.
“We are removing all the illegal connections and it’s something we regularly do in Ekurhuleni, as the municipality losses a lot of money due to it,” says a Metro Police officer.
“Electricity must be distributed properly, but this cannot happen if people take action into their own hands.
“The wires on the ground are very dangerous for the children, which is a huge concern.”
A resident from the area says that she is hurt by what is happening as, for years, they have been expected to live without water or lights.
“We know it wrong, but this safe for us as our shacks don’t burn because of paraffin stoves.”
She adds that, from what is happening, they can see that they will never have lights in their area and, thus, the illegal connections won’t stop.
