Here's why these areas still have no power

CITY Power has admitted that the city's power supply is under threat.

From vandalism to illegal connections, these are some of the factors that put a strain on the city's already aging and outdated infrastructure.

This was revealed by the power utility's spokesman, Isaac Mangena in a written response to Daily Sun.

"Old infrastructure is indeed a challenge for many of our areas of supply. However, we've embarked on projects aimed at upgrading and refurbishing infrastructure," Mangena said.

Emphasising that more work is done on the ground, Mangena said vandalism and illegal connections are a major drawback.

According to Mangena, the entity's debt book sits at R100 billion owed by big business parks, complexes and hospitals across the City of Joburg.

“Disconnection drives are one of many revenue collection measures to recoup money owed to City Power. They're conducted monthly although various offices have their own programmes in place to ensure those owing City Power pay for the electricity used,” he said.

But residents are not convinced.

“They're busy giving us updates about how vandalism is an issue, how they're embarking on switching on programmes and WhatsApp channel updates, but nobody is telling us when we'll be getting electricity back on. I don’t care about stolen cables or updates. All I want is electricity. Tell us when we'll get electricity back on,” Lerato Budaza, one of the residents, said.

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Lerato, who lives with her five-year-old niece in Honey Park, Roodepoort, said she wakes up at 6am every morning to bath in cold water as she gets her ready for school.

As tension mounts among Honeydew residents, who are without electricity, Ward Councillor Jacques Hoén said City Power is unable to restore power quickly.

According to Hoén, City Power is fighting a constant battle with criminals who vandalise infrastructure.

“Between load shedding, cable theft and vandalism, residents are without power more often,” he said.

Areas including Honey Park and the greater surrounding areas of Roodepoort have been without electricity since Friday, 12 April. This was after a tree fell on the transmission lines.

This has also led to several areas falling victim to vandalism.

The power utility said it's sitting with at least 1 075 calls, and 720 of these are residents without electricity for over 24 hours.