The residents of Tshwane ended their day yesterday with dry taps as the water was cut off following an infrastructure failure at the Rand Water’s Palmiet Booster Pumping Station. Rand Water said in a statement that the Medium Voltage Meter exploded and the cause of the explosion is not yet known and it is being investigated.
Rand Water notified the City today that the said infrastructure failure has affected its station’s water pumping capacity and that it is only able to supply 55% of its normal daily water supply volume.
Rand Water called on residents to reduce water consumption to avoid further water shortages and the reservoirs running dry.
The residents of the city were not given alternatives about the issue and or enough time to collect water. A businessman in Soshanguve said without water, he will not be able to run his fast-food business with other residents opting to buy water from nearby stores for family use.
Other residents from Soshanguve Block VV have opted to use water from fire hydrants.
“I came when I saw people coming too. I have children that need food and I can’t cook without water. I didn’t go to work because there was no water to bathe. I used the last bucket of water to cook last night and bath the little ones,” a resident said.
“The details of affected suburbs, as well as the contingency measures will be communicated by the relevant municipalities. Rand Water is working around the clock to conduct the repairs and restore normal supply, The estimated time to full restoration is unknown at this stage,” the water utility said in a statement.
The City of Tshwane reminds residents that the water restrictions that were imposed previously in line with the Water Supply By-Laws, were never withdrawn and are therefore still applicable.
Residents are reminded that they should not water or irrigate gardens with a hosepipe or sprinkler system between 06:00 and 18:00, not wash vehicles with hosepipes or high-pressure systems and they should not fill swimming pools.
