Water shortage hits KaNyamazane

Residents of some parts of KaNyamazane have had to endure five terrible days without water in the midst of stage 6 load-shedding.
This water shortage has left the community stranded and angered with only one choice but to buy water in five-litre bottles.

Leonard Moere, one of the community members in Ext 5, said water is still a huge challenge in this area.
“Silulumanzi and the City of Mbombela seem to have no contingency plan to deal with water issues. We have been suffering. We were promised that they would provide water through tankers, but they don’t come. It has been a difficult week for me. I could not wash, I could not bath and relieving myself has been a serious issue since I don’t have pit toilet,” he said.

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A statement from the City of Mbombela states that reservoir levels are critically low due to stage 6 load-shedding.
“Residents of Mbombela are hereby notified that our reservoir levels are critically low as a result of the rolling blackouts. The situation has also been exacerbated by the rising water flow in our rivers. Please bear with us as we build up volumes. We urge people to use water sparingly during this time,” read the statement.

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The spokesperson for Silulumanzi, Richmond Jele, said load-shedding has a direct impact on water production.

“The reservoirs in Nsikazi are very low due to the blackouts. We cannot pump water because a six-hour blackout reduces production and it forces us to start afresh to purify water.

With stage 6 we loose 12 hours of production. When a stage is planned, the plant must be turned off 30 minutes before the scheduled blackout to prevent damages. It must also be turned on 30 minutes later after the scheduled electricity returns, which cause delays in water purification and distribution.
“We have limited water tankers, but we try by all means to send them to the communities.”