MORE than 560 electricity faults were reported during Tuesday’s massive storm that left a trail of destruction throughout Durban and surrounding areas. According to the municipality, the city’s Electricity Unit worked around the clock attending to about 570 reported faults and restoring power to affected residents.
The municipality said in a media release on Wednesday afternoon that most affected areas had had power restored with the southern parts of Durban bearing the brunt of the storm. Areas that were still without power on Wednesday included:
Kingsburgh, Lower Illovo, Athlone Park, Nsimbini, uMlazi T section, uMlazi Q section, Plangweni, uMbilo, Zwelibomvu, Moveni, Intake/Demat and Tafelkop.
Road closures, hazardous driving conditions and the heavy rains hampered technical staff in attending to faults on site on Tuesday, which has caused further delays.
The city’s call centres were inundated with calls from residents affected by the storm, many of whom suffered call waiting times in excess of an hour due to the high volume of complaints. Customers are urged to report faults via the SMS line 083 700 0819, email address custocare@elec.durban.gov.za or via the website www.durban.gov.za (go to online services) should they have difficulty reaching the municipality on the toll free number 0801313111.
Residents are urged to only call the Emergency Management Call Centre for emergencies on 031-3610000
