Power failures exacerbate Joburg’s prolonged water shortages, fuelling public outrage

Johannesburg is in the grip of a deepening water crisis, with residents enduring prolonged outages, fuelling public outrage and demands for urgent action. The situation has been exacerbated by a series of power failures, further straining a water network already plagued by ageing infrastructure and persistent leaks.

As Democratic Alliance Councillor Neuren Pietersen said about Rand Water and Johannesburg Water updates, “One cannot call it news as there is nothing new.”

Last Tuesday, 11 February, a total power failure at the Emfuleni substation – which supplies Rand Water’s Vereeniging Water Treatment Plant – disrupted operations at the Forest Hill and Eikenhof pump stations. The Eikenhof station, which distributes treated water from southern Gauteng, feeds about two-thirds of Johannesburg. 



Although power was restored, the disruption, combined with already strained reservoirs due to leaks and high consumption in hot weather, worsened existing shortages.

Read more: Gauteng high court shut as mass Joburg water cuts hit again

“The Johannesburg Water system was already strained, and once you have acute events in an already vulnerable system, any disturbance in the system creates a strain in the existing available resources,” the water entity told Daily Maverick.

Joburg Water said the disruption severely affected the system’s recovery and estimated that within seven days, systems would have stabilised and the water supply would be fully restored. Many of the systems that had been affected had since recovered, provided that there were no further acute disruptions.

“As long as demand is not reduced, recovery will be difficult and slow and requires aggressive interventions and configuration changes in the system to regularise different parts of the system,” said spokesperson for Joburg Water Nombuso Shabalala.

Systems that were still affected and recovering. Areas where there was no reported water supply were being closely monitored, including the Crosby, Brixton, Hursthill (part of the Commando System), Berea, Forest Hill, Lenasia and Orange Farm systems, South Hills and Parktown. 

On Sunday, 16 February, another power outage struck Rand Water's Lethabo Raw Water Pumping Station, halting the flow of raw water to the Vereeniging plant. While Eskom addressed the issue, Rand Water cautioned that restoring full pumping capacity at Amanzimtoti, Eikenhof and Zwartkopjes stations would take hours. 

The outage further affected areas across Johannesburg, including Yeoville and Eikenhof, along with Benoni, Vereeniging, Vanderbijlpark and Sasolburg.

Johannesburg Water has acknowledged the severe strain on its systems, leading to reduced reservoir and tower levels, necessitating nightly “throttling” (reducing water pressure) in some areas to manage demand.

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Public outcry and civil society response

Residents queue for water in Swazi Township, Daveyton, Ekurhuleni. (Photo: Gallo Images / OJ Koloti)

Continued calls to ramp up infrastructure budget

To report a leak contact your  ward councillor or report the leak to Joburg Water:

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