Nearly week-long water crisis deepens as Johannesburg maintenance affects over 80 areas

A major water infrastructure maintenance project in Johannesburg’s inner city, at the Hector Norris pump station has extended well beyond its planned completion date, affecting more than 80 areas across the city.

The project, which began at 6pm on 31 January, was initially scheduled to conclude on Monday, at 6pm on 3 February.

However, the maintenance continues to disrupt water supply throughout the region.

The reason for the now prolonged interruption and maintenance is a burst pipe.

Johannesburg Water confirmed on Wednesday that while some progress has been made, work remains ongoing.

“Johannesburg Water is pleased to report that welding work is complete. The line will be recharged for leakage checks, bringing us closer to full water supply restoration,” the utility stated.

Johannesburg water service restoration attempts

The situation has been marked by fluctuating service levels.

On Wednesday, the utility announced a temporary breakthrough, stating: “As part of our mitigation efforts, full supply has been restored to affected customers. The team has successfully switched to an alternative mainline and is actively pumping water into the inner city to maintain service while pipeline repairs continue.”

However, this improvement proved short-lived. By Thursday, Joburg Water issued a new customer notice indicating that 80 areas were again without water or experiencing reduced supply.

On Thursday, Joburg Water said further details on alternative water supply to customers would be provided, though the utility did not say when.

ALSO READ: Progress but still no water to these 86 Joburg areas after 4-day outage

Joburg Water reservoir status

The latest system status report shows most reservoirs maintaining stable levels, though Hurst Hill Reservoir 2 and Berea Reservoir are reporting fair levels, indicating potential pressure management challenges as repairs continue.

Johannesburg Water has assured residents that “regular updates will be provided on the progress of the maintenance” and acknowledged the inconvenience to customers, expressing appreciation for their “patience and understanding as we work to complete this critical repair.”

According to the utility, the maintenance is expected to benefit consumers through improved service delivery.

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Areas affected by maintenance

The planned maintenance at Hector Norris Pump Station, which began on January 31, continues to affect dozens of areas.

The areas affected include:

• Johannesburg CBD
• Newtown
• Selby
• Jeppestown
• Doorfontein
• Forest Hill
• Turfontein
• Rossetenville
• La Rochelle
• Turf Club
• Kenilworth
• Towerby
• De Wetshof
• Observatory
• Bruma
• Cyrildene
• Bezuidenhout Valley
• Betrams
• Lorentzville
• Judith’s Paarl
• Troyville
• Parktown
• Victoria
• Linksfield
• Glenhazel
• Rouxille
• Highlands North
• Sandringham
• Percelia Estate
• Fairmount
• Talboton
• Rouxville
• Glensan
• Dunhill
• Abbotsford
• Oaklands
• Melrose
• Cheltondale
• Houghton
• Waverley
• Saxonwold
• Hyde Park
• Illovo
• Parkview
• Killarney
• Craighall
• Hursthill
• Crown (Industrial)
• Fordsburg
• Mayfair
• Berea
• Forest Town
• Kensington
• Mountain View
• New Doornfontein
• Bramfontein
• Hillbrow
• Yeoville
• Malvern
• Amalgam
• Amalgam Ext
• Burghersdorp Ext. 1
• City West
• Crown
• Crown City
• Crown City Ext
• Crown Ext
• Crown North
• Homestead Park
• Micor Industrial
• Paarlshoop
• Selby Ext
• Albertville Ext. 2
• Coronationville
• Greymont
• Martindale
• Montclare
• Newclare
• Newlands
• Triomf
• Westbury
• Westdene
• Albertville Ext. 1
• Emmarentia
• Melville
• Richmond
• Greenside
• Montgomery Park

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