Burst pipe causes water-shedding for residents

A major pipe which has burst at the Honeydew Reservoir caused outrage after several areas were left with no water for over 12 hours.

This comes after a pipe outlet ruptured on September 29, causing the street to flood with water and leaving several areas without water supply. Johannesburg Water (JW) released a statement on Tuesday, October 1 informing the public that repairs were underway as contractor teams conducted assessments and determined that the extent of the work was significant and had various dependencies.

Upon arrival on site, the Northsider was denied access and was prevented from taking photos on site. Officers from the Johannesburg Water’s security provider, Imvusa Security and Cleaning, even prevented Northside Journalist Tshegofatso Thobedi from taking photos from outside the facility.

The Northsider spoke to JW communications officer Nolwazi Dhlamini, who mentioned that there is no estimated time for the completion of repairs and restoration of water supply.

“Water tankers were dispatched to affected areas, and JW continues to prioritise this work to ensure water supply is restored,” Dhlamini added.

On Wednesday morning, another statement was released saying that two of the three joints have been repaired and the contractors are working on the last joint to connect the pipes.

The Northsider visited the site again, and upon arrival, the outlet pipe was leaking after Johannesburg Water released a statement saying restoration of the burst pipe is in progress.

Questions were sent to Johannesburg Water communications officer Nolwazi Dhlamini again regarding an update on the restoration process and the areas affected.

“Joburg Water remains committed to working throughout the day to ensure the repair work is completed. During the monitoring process, alternative water supply will still be provided to affected areas.

“We have been informed that the reservoir has improved and is supplying water. Flushing systems were completed and airlock was eliminated; however, the teams are monitoring the system.”

Johannesburg Water then provided a further update on Thursday, saying, “The outlet pipe is still leaking, which was affected by the rupture, but we have allowed the system to recover and will regularly update customers on necessary interventions as soon as they are available.”

In the meantime, all affected areas will continue to receive alternative water supply until further notice.