Joburg Water urges residents to use water sparingly amid load shedding crisis

While the country received some relief from stage 6 load shedding, Johannesburg Water has urged residents to use water sparingly.

The utility said it is facing several challenges, including an increase in demand due to the heatwave, as well as the crippling and deliberate power cuts.

Conserve water

Residents must conserve water, Joburg Water spokesperson Puleng Mopeli said.

“Although some of our critical sites are exempted from load shedding, the entity is managing this through backup systems. However, our towers are taking strain. In order to maintain a steady water supply, we urge residents to please observe Level 1 water restrictions and reduce consumption.”

Restrictions

Mopeli has reminded residents that water restrictions are in place.

“Level 1 restrictions prohibit the use of hosepipes between 6am and 6pm, and the use of hosepipes for paved areas and driveways. Customers are encouraged to use grey water to irrigate or gardens, wash cars or clean driveways.”

“Johannesburg Water will continue to monitor the levels and communicate any new updates. We urge residents to report any form of vandalism and theft of water infrastructure,” she said.

ALSO READ: Slight relief for South Africans as load shedding is reduced

Load shedding

Meanwhile, deliberate power cuts will continue at a lower level from Tuesday after Eskom announced that 14 generating units were restored at several power stations.

The ailing parastatal announced the drop in power cuts on Monday.

It said stage 4 load shedding would be implemented at 5am to 4pm daily from Tuesday morning, with stage 5 daily from 4pm to 5am.

Eskom had been imposing stage 6 load shedding for almost two weeks.

Diesel

Eskom had also procured an additional 50 million litres of diesel on 6 January 2023, spokesperson Sikonathi Mantshantsha said.

“This fuel will be utilised sparingly to manage the pumped storage dam levels and to limit the amount of load shedding during the day. Together, these emergency generators contribute 5 700MW of capacity,” he said.

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