Johannesburg North pensioner left without power for seven days
After repairs to underground water pipes on Church Street, Pieter van der Westhuizen's home was left without power after a cable was damaged by a worker's pick-axe.
A Johannesburg North pensioner was left without power for seven days after damage was caused to his outside electricity cables during repair work.
After repairs to underground water pipes on Church Street, Pieter van der Westhuizen’s home was left without power after a cable was damaged by a worker’s pick-axe.
“On Wednesday, we had loadshedding and workers were outside laying water pipes. When everyone else’s power came back on, mine stayed off. I was told that my cables were damaged by the workers and the cable needed to be fixed,” he said.
Van Der Westhuizen, with the help of his son, reported the issue to City Power and Ward 101 councillor Dalu Cele who escalated the issue with the power utility.
Seven days later on 7 September, City Power workers were on-site in the morning to fix the issue.
Workers on-site confirmed the information provided by Van Der Westhuizen, and a feeder cable to his home was the only section of cabling affected by the damage.
The pensioner said the seven-day ordeal was very tough for him in his specific situation.
“I am a cancer patient, but I still like to live independently as I can, so not having any electricity is very difficult. I need hot water to clean myself and cook, and I had to boil water by other means. I had a fully stocked fridge, and now everything is rotten. I wish that issues like this can be fixed immediately in situations like mine.”
