In yet another case of paying customers being affected by illegal electricity connections, non-profit organization (NPO) From The Heart Care Centre spent 12 consecutive days without power.
This while illegal connections make the Princess informal settlement light up at night. The loss of power led the NPO to having to dispose of large amounts of meat and valuable medication for the children as it spoilt in inactive refrigerators, administrator Angeline Smit told the Record.
The NPO cares for around 130 children in the settlement on a daily basis by providing three cooked meals per child. Numerous phone calls to City Power finally resulted in the power being restored yesterday afternoon, Tuesday 14 July.
“We spend around R9 000 a month on electricity just to be left without it so regularly that it incapacitates us to provide for the children,” Smit said.
She submitted photos to the Record of just some of the clear-as-day electricity theft.
Earlier this month, the Record reported Ward 85 councillor Carl Mann has been hard at work to salvage the situation by getting the municipality to install a substation in the temporary housing site, removing one of the problematic substations and reconnecting residents of Lindhaven and Grobler Park to a far-removed station.
Noel Maso, City Power Roodepoort depot manager declined to comment on the situation, saying it is a regular occurrence in the area. He asked media queries to be forwarded to City Power spokesperson Sol Masolo, who couldn’t yet comment on the situation.
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