Johannesburg - The City of Johannesburg’s power utility, City Power, has apologised to customers affected by the power outage caused by a burned transformer substation in Brixton on Sunday night.
According to City Power, the chamber along Fulham and Ripley in Brixton caught fire around 6pm, and preliminary investigations suggest it was triggered by overloading.
“Unfortunately, by the time the fire department arrived on site, the damage was already extensive and nothing could be salvaged. Every piece of equipment was reduced to ashes,” said City Power spokesperson Isaac Mangena.
Mangena said the utility is in the process of appointing a contractor to conduct an overall assessment today and give an estimation of the financial losses and the duration required to complete the repairs.
He added that the Hursthill SDC (secondary distribution centre) is in the process of ordering two mini-substations, a ring main unit, cables and joints, and that additional material may be required after the assessment.
“We are ramping up efforts to try to shorten the duration of the outage for customers in Brixton, Rossmore and surroundings,” City Power said.
The utility added that pumping from Brixton Reservoir has also been affected, which will result in water supply challenges.
“Johannesburg Water will provide more details relating to water supply interruptions. Meanwhile, a contractor is expected to commence with repairs today,” Mangena said.
On Sunday evening, Johannesburg Water said a pumping unit was being organised for the Helen Joseph Hospital as a result of the water supply issues.
City Power said more details, including the estimated time of restoration, will be provided during the course of the day.
The Star