Water is back in Germiston after five days of dry taps and empty reservoirs.

ALSO READ: Locals urged to close taps during water supply interruptions by CoE

On February 23, Rand Water reported a vandalism incident that caused damage to a meter supplying the Eden Park township in the City of Ekurhuleni.

The incident compelled Rand Water to conduct an emergency shutdown to replace the valves.

Rand Water discovered a string of vandalised valves and the repair work took a prolonged time.

As a result, Edenvale, Boksburg and surrounding areas within the city were affected by water outages.

ALSO READ: Make sure taps are properly closed during water supply interruptions – CoE

The CoE distributed water storage tanks and roaming water tankers in affected neighbourhoods.

Rand Water reported that water was restored after repairs were completed on February 27.

“Reservoirs were severely impacted and several areas were without water,” said Rand Water media spokesperson Makenosi Maroo.

“Rand Water is now pumping at full capacity. They advised consumers to contact their respective municipalities for recovery updates.

“Vandalism of water infrastructure is a huge concern to us. Rand Water appeals to anyone who witnesses tampering with water infrastructure to report it by calling our 24-hour customer service centre at 0860 10 10 60 or sending a WhatsApp message to 072 545 5041,” said Maroo.

Two of the many areas in Germiston that were experiencing water outages are Wards 92 and 36.

Ward 92 Clr Kade Guerreiro said they switched on the Windsor pump station by Monday.

“Water levels were rising by that same afternoon at Northridge Reservoir. Those in low-lying areas were able to receive water first,” said Guerreiro.

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“Residents are urged to use water sparingly and always keep a reserve of water in bottles and buckets for any emergency.

“The areas affected in ward 92 are Primrose East, Sunnyridge, Sunnyrock, Elandsfontein and Klopperpark,” said Guerreiro.