Gauteng buckling under weight of load shedding, heatwaves and water restrictions

Following scorching weather in Gauteng, the provinces regional weather said there may be some reprieve for residents who have been struggling in the sweltering heat.

On Monday, residents were warned to stay out of the sun and take precaution as extremely hot temperatures and heatwave conditions grip the province.

The South African Weather Service also confirmed a heatwave in Gauteng, the highveld of Mpumalanga and the south-western bushveld of Limpopo.

ALSO READ: Gauteng heatwave: Residents warned to stay out of the sun and hydrate

With South Africa in the throes of summer, Gauteng is yet to experience the first rains of the season.

Rain on the way

On Wednesday, the regional weather service forecasted the probability of rain across the province.

“Isolated heat-induced storms currently moving over the southern half of Gauteng,” it tweeted.

Load shedding

The heatwave may have added more pressure on the grid as Eskom suffered a couple of more trips at its power station on Tuesday.

Load shedding has roller-coasted to different stages over the past few weeks, with the ailing parastatal abruptly announcing that the deliberate power cuts would be ramped up to stage 4 until further notice.

This has dampened South Africans mood, as the country will mark an entire month of continuous load shedding on Saturday, a warning that was issued by Eskom’s Chief Financial Officer Jan Oberholzer during a virtual media briefing last month.

Water shedding

Meanwhile, several Rand Water pump stations, supplying a large number of Gauteng metros have implemented Stage 2 water restrictions as reservoirs and towers run dry.

According to a statement issued by the water utility on Tuesday, due to increased water demand, the capacity of Rand Water storage has decreased from 52% to 38%.

“The bulk supplier will restrict high demand customer meters in various parts of the City of Johannesburg. The outcome is to reduce the current high consumption and restore capacity levels back to 60%,” it said.

ALSO READ: Rand Water implements stage 2 water restrictions in Joburg