Johannesburg - The DA in Gauteng said it was concerned about the frequency of interrupted water supplies to municipalities around the province.
This comes after Rand Water confirmed that there were problems with water supply because of technical issues with the system caused by load shedding.
Municipalities including Joburg were experiencing water problems, with hospitals such as Helen Joseph having to be supplied with water tankers to ensure the functioning of the facilities.
“Gauteng residents once again have limited access to water due to Rand Water’s ineptitude. The continued load shedding is negatively impacting Rand Water’s ability to supply our reservoirs in the province with water,” DA provincial leader Solly Msimanga said.
He said it was extremely worrying that during a heat wave, residents did not have access to a reliable supply of water.
“It is high time that Rand Water gets its house in order so that some of the pressure can be taken off municipalities. Furthermore, we demand that Rand Water must communicate timeously to the residents of Gauteng through their municipalities about the planned water outages due to the maintenance of water infrastructure,” he said.
Msimanga said Rand Water should also provide updates on reservoir levels per municipality so that they are aware of the severity of the issue and can find ways to mitigate it.
“In order to find a solution to the current problem with the supply of water in the province, Rand Water should urgently convene a meeting with all the municipalities,” he said.
Meanwhile, as residents grapple with water outages in most parts of the city, Joburg Water says it might take more than 72 hours for the system to normalise.
In a statement, the entity said improvements were noticed in the functioning of the Eikenhof pump station.
“The Eagle’s Nest and Aeroton systems in the south of Joburg have been stabilised. However, Crown Gardens is recovering at a slower rate, but performing better than Monday,” it said.
The Star