Johannesburg’s power utility, City Power said it is experiencing large volumes of phone calls due heavy rains in Gauteng that damaged infrastructure.
Image: Photo: Supplied/City Power
Johannesburg power utility City Power says it is struggling due to severe flooding and infrastructure damage caused by the weekend’s rainfall. The utility said it had reported over 2,600 calls since Monday morning about power outages.
This comes after the South African Weather Service (SAWS) has issued an orange level 5 warning for severe thunderstorms over the central parts of the country, with more rain expected in Gauteng on Monday.
The heavy rain in the province over the weekend led to severe flooding on the roads, damaging properties and causing hazardous road conditions.
City Power spokesperson Isaac Mangena said the heavy rain caused damage to electricity infrastructure in parts of Johannesburg, which affected the utility’s operations.
”City Power wishes to inform customers that its operations have been impacted by the heavy rainfall that has flooded some roads and damaged electricity infrastructure in parts of Johannesburg,” Mangena said.
He said when the day began, over 2600 logged calls of electricity interruptions were recorded.
“The majority emanated from the Inner City, where two lines from Sebenza tripped in the early hours of this morning.”
City Power has reported over 2,600 calls about power outages caused by the heavy rains that have hit Gauteng province.
Image: Supplied/City Power
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According to Mangena, despite prevailing challenges, City Power has managed to restore one line, and is inspecting the second line to determine the cause of the trip.
The areas that are affected include Bertrams, Kensington, Fairview, Malvern, Troyville and other surrounding areas.
“The estimated time of restoration (ETR) will be provided once the assessment has been completed,” Mangena said.
He also noted the level 5 warning for sustained heavy rainfalls, which could affect operations and lead to delays in responding to outage calls.
“In the interim, we encourage customers to reduce electricity consumption to avoid overloading the network and causing further outages,” Mangena added.
SAWS also warned that the level 5 warning would result in flooding across central parts of the North West.
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