Cable thieves are costing the municipality thousands of rands as they continue to destroy and loot substations in their quest to make a quick buck.
In one of the more recent cases, substation 15 in Kwezi was targeted a couple of weeks ago. Municipal Manager Patrick Mkhize explained that the cable thieves dug trenches at the back of the substation in order to steal the underground cables.
“The thieves stole about 10 metres of cable, which cost the municipality about R15,000 to replace,” said Mr Mkhize.
In addition, residents in Mimosadale had no electricity for eight hours. To prevent further cable theft, a security guard was placed on the premises.
Cable theft has been an ongoing problem for Inkosi Langalibalele Local Municipality, causing prolonged electricity outages, damage to infrastructure and expenditure to repair the damaged substations.
However, Mr Mkhize added that the number of cases has gone down recently.
“Cases of cable theft are continuing, but have slightly decreased after two suspected thieves were nabbed by a security company,” he explained.
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