Water crisis 'the result of shocking negligence'

Your water crisis has been blamed on a "perfect storm", a combination of factors nobody could have foreseen.

At least, this is what Rand Water officials have been telling residents in about 100 Gauteng suburbs, many of whom have gone without water intermittently - and for extended periods - for two weeks.

Yet for 10 months one of four crucial water-supply systems in the province operated without the standard requirement of having a functional back-up electricity transformer.

City Power, the officials said, was in the process of "refurbishing" it.

Mike Muller, a former director-general of Water Affairs and now a commissioner in the National Planning Commission, said: "To find that the pumping station that supports much of Johannesburg has a reserve transformer that hasn't been working since November 2013 is quite shocking."

He added: "It is an indictment not just of City Power but of Rand Water and Joburg Water, who needed to ensure that there are contingency plans in place to keep critical parts of the system working when something goes wrong."

Muller said the emergency transformer needed to be checked at least weekly.

"If it's not working, that's a matter for the chief executive officer," he said.

Rand Water has warned that the water crisis will continue in some areas for at least two weeks as water is redistributed evenly across its supply tanks.

The water utility's woes started on September 15 when the remaining transformer at Rand Water's System 1 packed up.The taps went dry in several areas of Johannesburg, including Linden Extension, Mayfair, Westbury, Bosmont and Constantia.

While working on this problem, a second power-supply problem hit Rand Water's primary supply system on September 19 - resulting in a total shutdown of System 1 and depleting water levels at its three other systems.

Residents in mainly high-lying parts of central and northern Johannesburg, eastern Tshwane, several suburbs in Ekurhuleni and all the way through to Brits in the North West are now affected by the water shortage.

On September 21 another of Rand Water's supply systems was affected by poor power supply - and a day later cables were stolen. This le d to a virtual collapse of the water-supply system. One functional station was left supplying southern parts of the city.

Rand Water's chief operating officer, Sipho Mosai, said this was "a perfect storm, never seen before".

For residents of areas like Bedfordview, parts of Midrand and Centurion the drought is not likely to end for at least another two weeks, before all systems are fully restored.

Colin McKenzie from Bedfordview has seen his borehole, which was originally sunk for irrigation purposes, become an unexpected oasis for the neighbourhood.

"The water that we get from the borehole is fit for human consumption, it's drinkable. Both my immediate neighbours don't have water, so we started running pipes from my borehole taps to my neighbours," he said.

McKenzie, 49, now has borehole water running through his entire house and has become the neighbourhood water supplier since the outage struck just over a week ago.

Gideon Jansen, 79, from Sunnyrock, Germiston, has not had water since last Saturday.

"We had a [municipal] water tanker, but it was emptied earlier this week and they haven't refilled it," he said.

Jansen said he has had to "drag" around two 25-litre cannisters to take home daily.

"My wife is ill and she doesn't leave the house. If I wasn't there, where would she have gotten water from?" he said.

By Friday, residents in more than 20 suburbs, including Rooihuiskraal, Erasmia, The Reeds, Blair Athol and Valhalla, in Tshwane, were still receiving only an intermittent supply.

The crisis triggered several high-level meetings - with Gauteng premier David Makhura asking the national Department of Water Affairs and Sanitation for a report, as it oversees Rand Water. The report was presented on Friday.

The minister, Nomvula Mokonyane, said various options were examined for the urgent restoration of the water supply.

"After various scenarios were investigated, load-shifting, a redistribution of water between reservoirs without compromising supply to others, was found to be the most viable," she said.

Meanwhile, experts this week warned that South Africa was just one drought away from widespread water restrictions.

Professor Roland Schulze, a water expert from the University of KwaZulu-Natal, said the country needed good management to survive water shortages in future.

"We have to be far better at maintaining our water infrastructure and ensure that it operates optimally," Schulze said.

Sasol's water expert Martin Ginster warned that the country could face water restrictions during the next drought unless South Africans adopt the habit of conserving water. - Additional reporting by Jan Bornman

Consumers affected by the water crisis and those who want to report additional supply problems can contact Rand Water at: 0860101060