Erratic power outages in Durban North leave residents in the dark

THE constant power failures in recent weeks have angered Durban North residents, leaving them frustrated and at a loss for solutions on how to manage the situation within their means.

The power outages are in addition to load shedding. They are reported to occur sporadically during the course of the day. This, coupled with load shedding, sometimes leaves residents with no electricity for up to six hours per day.

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Leanne Atkinson, who moved to Durban North two years ago and works from home, is one of the residents who have been affected by the cuts.

She told Northglen News what a typical day with power cuts is like for her and her family.

“I am relationship manager for a tech firm that develops software for banks and attorneys. With these constant power cuts, working from home has become a nightmare. I find myself working odd and longer hours as I have to play catch up when the power eventually returns,” she said.

She said some of the inconveniences she experienced during the outages included not having access to wi-fi, being unable to make lunches and breakfast for her children before they left for school and being unable to stick to a routine or plan. She said the spontaneous outages could sometimes last for up to 90 minutes.

“I have to deal with these power outages. The property rates are high in this area, so it baffles me as to why it’s only Durban North that experiences this on a daily basis, several times a day,” she said.

eThekwini Municipality’s spokesperson, Msawake Mayisela said teams were dispatched to the area to repair a series of cable faults last week.

“Since the extent of the damage on each fault varied, so did the restoration times. Prior to these cable faults in different parts of the Durban North area, no similar pattern was recorded in the previous week. Should it persist, the City’s Electricity Department will have to investigate,” he said.

Mayisela added that when it came to cable faults, the best the City could do was to replace the cables timeously.

“The extent of the damage on each fault also determines and affects restoration times. We plead with our customers to bear with us in cases where restoration takes longer than expected,” he said.

He said that load shedding also affects the (electrical) network, and advised that residents switch off all high consumption appliances such as geysers, stoves and air conditioning units, during power interruptions to prevent possible overload trips when power is restored.

“This will also protect sensitive electronic equipment from possible damage,” he said.