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Water crisis: What lessons did Joburg Water learn from latest outage?
Johannesburg Water told ward councillors that it will improve communication and distribution during the next outage.
Image for illustrative purposes. Picture: iStock
The areas in Johannesburg affected by the long weekend water shutdown have almost recovered.
Certain towers and reservoirs are still low but Johannesburg Water has reported that all are at various stages of recovery.
Johannesburg Mayor Dada Morero visited multiple sites on Wednesday to evaluate the recovery process.
Joburg’s water systems recovering
While many areas had their water service restored as early as Tuesday morning, some still had dry taps on Wednesday afternoon.
The mayor said the areas in the most elevated parts of the city could see little to intermittent service for the next two to three days as the system fully replenishes.
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He urged those who had water to use it sparingly, as overuse could hinder progress in other parts of the system.
Morero thanked all involved, including the technicians, staff and ward councillors who worked to complete the job and coordinate the distribution of alternative water supply. He also thanked the city’s residents.
“Thank you to all the residents for your patience and resilience during this period. Together, we are ensuring sustainable water delivery,” the mayor said.
Ward councillor feedback
Before Morero’s inspections, Johannesburg Water briefed the city’s ward councillors on 17 December on how operational matters could be improved during the next outage.
Although this is not the first lengthy outage government entities have had to plan for, Johannesburg Water acknowledged shortcomings in their planning.
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Ward councillors highlighted a shortage of tankers, inadequate security, insufficient communication and slow response times as chief concerns.
Improving on those aspects, as well as secure route planning, engagement with private entities, real-time updates on water levels and permanent installation of back-up supply to public facilities were touted.
Lessons learnt from water outage
Johannesburg Water acknowledged that the number of supply points was a problem, with the entity saying it will order more stationary tanks.
Additionally, it will investigate the possibility of drilling boreholes within reservoir complexes where the geology of the area permits.
Locating fire hydrants in strategic locations to be used as alternative filling points, as well as establishing self-help filling points for residents at all depots was suggested.
Safety concerns addressed
Johannesburg Water reported several incidents where water tanker drivers were robbed and attacked.
To combat this, it said it will collaborate with law enforcement agencies to escort trucks and staff in high-risk areas.
Establishing region-based units to coordinate the logistic operations would go hand-in-hand with the installation of temporary tracking units on water trucks used during outages.
Johannesburg Water suggested residents play their part, saying it will emphasise that they store adequate litres before the water disruption starts.
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