Hammanskraal faces water shortage after substation fire

Water tankers are to be sent to Hammanskraal after residents were left without power and water following a fire at Pyramid substation.

Hammanskraal farmer Theunis Vogel said there were rumours that residents in Hammanskraal would only have power by the weekend after the Pyramid substation burned out last week.

Vogel said it was the third time the substation has burned out in the past decade.

ETA for restoration for Hammanskraal not determined

The City of Tshwane’s Lindela Mashigo said the estimated time for restoration has not been determined.

Mashigo said the city will provide water tankers until the situation normalises.

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This is after the City of Tshwane’s water and sanitation department temporarily shut down the Temba water treatment plant that supplies water to Hammanskraal and surrounding areas due to the quality of water from Leeukraal Dam.

“These challenges are related to last week’s power supply interruption following a fire that broke out at Pyramid Substation.

“The substation supplies power to the Rooiwal wastewater treatment plant which was also affected by the interruption for a period before being back fed.

Wastewater treatment plant affected by interruption

“As a result, the plant is currently discharging untreated effluent into the Apies River which feeds the Leeukraal Dam,” he said.

Mashigo said since the incident the Temba water treatment plant had had to reduce pumping capacity and this was now unsustainable.

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“Pumping has now been shut off to avoid supplying water of poor quality to consumers,” he said.

Mashigo said technicians from the city’s energy and electricity department had made significant progress with the repairs at the Pyramid substation after working throughout the weekend after the substation caught fire last Wednesday.

Progress with repairs

The Grootvlei power line, the Vastfontein East line, the Vastfontein West line and the Pyramid line would be off until further notice, he added.

Power outages were also reported in parts of Mamelodi, Waverley and Equestria over the weekend with some areas still without power.