The power struggle continues for Eldos
Residents who are working from home are experiencing difficulties due to constant power outages in the community.
With cables being stolen during the night and low voltages when the electricity is restored, residents are concerned about the issues especially as we are moving into the winter season.
Since the fire at the substation on April 15, the Community Policing Forum (CPF) has been working tirelessly to ensure that there is a decrease in cable theft.
CPF public relations officer, Marcelle Daniels said, “We need torches, vests and to some degree, a portion of the guys that are doing patrols would need bulletproof vests.”
These outages generate a variety of issues, including the inability of businesses to operate, the necessity for elderly persons to use oxygen equipment, the requirement for laptops and other gadgets to be charged, and the inability of many individuals to complete their day-to-day duties.
Ellan Rademeyer, a business owner said, “I have to shuffle my clients based on Load Shedding schedules and in some cases cancel appointments at the last minute due to sudden power cuts.”
Residents usually log calls; a contractor will come out and repair the problem but within hours the same problem reappears or the cable gets stolen again. The infrastructure is poorly maintained contributing to the problem at hand leaving residents frustrated.
“As a digital designer that works from home, I heavily rely on my computer and other gadgets that use electricity. Without these, my productivity drops and I need to find another, often costly solution to deliver my work on time,” said Leolin Coetzee, a resident from Eldorado Park.
Residents are now dreading the winter season as they wonder if City Power will be able to keep the lights on while they fight cable theft and vandalism to infrastructure.
