Sweltering heat and dry taps: 86-hour water outage nears end

After almost three days of water cuts, Rand Water has finally completed maintenance work on the Zwartkopjes pump station and as of Sunday morning, its pumping is at 100%, according to Joburg Water.

Joburg Water cut supply this weekend to conduct maintenance work in Zwartkoppies and Eikenhof pump stations in a planned 86-hour shortage.

The outage angered and frustrated residents as Joburg residents battled scorching weather.

Water recoveries

Joburg Water spokesperson Nombuso Shabalala on Sunday said systems supplied from Zwartkopjes are also now recovering and building capacity.

“These systems include: Parktown, Berea, Forrest Hill, Naturena, Orlando East, as well as the Hector Norris Pump Station, which supplies the Johannesburg CBD. The maintenance work at the Eikenhof pump station still continues, with completion projected for Monday, 16 December 2024.

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“The maintenance at Eikenhof is impacting the following systems: Soweto, Randburg/Roodepoort, Commando (Brixton, Crosby and Hursthill), Lenasia, parts of Johannesburg central including Eagles Nest, Crown Gardens, Aeroton and Alan Manor reservoirs,” Shabalala said.

Emergency relief

Meanwhile, Joburg Water was granted emergency approval on Saturday for deploying additional roaming tankers to affected areas.

Shabalala said hospitals, clinics and old age homes continue to be prioiritised by ensuring that stationary tankers placed in these critical areas are refilled as and when required.

“Complete recovery of all impacted systems takes between five and 14 days after the supply has been fully restored. Residents in low-lying areas will always recover quicker than those in high-lying areas.

“Johannesburg Water technical teams will also ensure to reconfigure systems to ensure supply is fully restored. Updates will be provided on the progress of the Rand Water maintenance,” she said.

Joburg South

The utility also provided an update on areas affected in the south of Joburg including Orange Farm, Ennerdale, and Lawley.

It said the reservoir outlets were opened on Sunday morning.

“The Orange Farm reservoir has sufficient levels to supply the area. However, the Ennerdale and Lawley reservoirs are still in the process of recovering and currently remain at low levels.

“As part of the Rand Water maintenance, the Lenasia system as it is impacted, will continue being supplied with alternative supply through tankers,” the utility said.

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