“Use water sparingly” is the advice of bulk water supplier Rand Water after large areas of Johannesburg and Tshwane were hit by supply disruptions in recent weeks.
A week ago, Rand Water reported a power outage in the engine room of its Zuikerbosch water treatment plant, which supplies water to the Eikenhof and Mapleton booster stations.
Rand Water says its reservoir capacity has dropped from 52% to 38% due to high demand, leading to water restrictions being put in place.
Parts of the town around Dainfern and Diepsloot have suffered months of intermittent water supplies, with some parts going weeks without water.
The outage at the Zuikerbosch plant affected 19 regions in the greater Joburg region, from Soweto to the Joburg CBD and Honeydew. Large parts of Ekurhuleni and Tshwane were also affected.
Read: Joburg can no longer rely on its water supply [Sep 2021]
Low reservoirs but full dam
Rand Water blamed recent high temperatures, as well as load shedding, as factors contributing to water shortages.
This is despite Vaal Dam – the main source of water supplying the wider Gauteng region – being 94.1% full, down from 83% at the same time a year ago.
Lily:
On Thursday, Johannesburg Water warned residents that reservoirs and towers supplying water to various parts of the city are “seriously low to empty” due to the implementation of Stage 2 restrictions. supplying Soweto is at low levels, as are several other reservoirs around the city.
“Customers are urged to reduce their water usage as this will help recover constrained systems. While customers in lower areas may still have water, other customers in higher areas are without supply,” Johannesburg Water tweeted.
Johannesburg Water Alert: Phase 2 water restrictions #JoburgUpdates ^K pic.twitter.com/9JKndAaQsL
— Johannesburg Water (@JHBWater) October 6, 2022
The planned outages over the coming week will impact several parts of north and west Joburg, including Sandton, Morningside, Parkmore and Protea Glen.
Read: What it’s like to live in a city without water
Stage 2 restrictions prohibit the use of municipal water for gardening (garden hoses are permitted before 6 a.m. and after 6 p.m.), filling swimming pools (other than for sufficient top-ups to allow pool pumps to operate) and for washing cars and paved areas.
Make a plan
Reduced water pipe pressure at two hospitals – Helen Joseph Hospital in Auckland Park and Rahima Moosa Mother and Child Hospital in Coronationville – has forced Johannesburg Water to ship in mobile tankers to secure a supply continued.
Residents of Joburg and Tshwane took to Twitter to share their stories of using bottled water for washing and drinking.
The city of Joburg issued an upbeat advisory on Thursday, saying residents “can now expect to receive a steady supply of water as the reservoirs begin to fill.”
Residents can now expect a steady supply of water as the reservoirs begin to fill. This will remain the case as long as Rand Water does not encounter any challenges from their side. #JoburgServices #JoburgWorks #JoziSaveWater ^ N.J. pic.twitter.com/vqpdVjhGdT
— City of Joburg (@CityofJoburgZA) October 6, 2022
Johannesburg Water CEO Ntshavheni Mukwevho told eNCA there has been a high demand for water due to hot temperatures in the province, compounded by power outages. The load shedding had an impact on localized water pumping stations, although the most serious problem was the interruption of the power supply from the bulk water supplier, Rand Water.
