City working to restore electricity to several eThekwini communities in the wake of heavy rains

Karen Singh|Published 3 years ago

eThekwini Municipality said any power outages experienced in the city are not related to loadshedding and appealed to residents to report power outages. Durban Metro Electricity workers. File Picture

DURBAN - eThekwini Municipality encouraged residents in the region to continue reporting faults after the heavy rains and flooding at the weekend.

It said any power outages were not related to load shedding.

“Residents are therefore encouraged to continue reporting faults using the following platforms: WhatsApp: 076 791 2449, Call: 080 311 1111 and Email: electricity.faults@durban.gov.za.“

The City said eThekwini Electricity Department was working around the clock to restore electricity to many communities across the municipality.

“The weekend rains came as technicians were still working on repairs from the April floods. About 3 200 individual faults were reported over the weekend, but a fair percentage of these has since been repaired. Work is continuing.”

The municipality reminded residents that a lot of the city’s electrical equipment was submerged in water during the floods and as a result there would be intermittent problems for a while which would lead to outages.

“In instances where there are large-scale outages our technicians prioritise faults that affect many customers, a large area, or those faults that enable the restoration of critical services, such as water. This could mean that it may take a while for technicians to attend to faults that impact one or a few customers,” the city said.

In La Mercy and uMdloti, electricity infrastructure was severely damaged and mini-substations were washed away, it said.

“Repairs are in progress, and power to some of the properties is already restored.”

Updates on repairs in other areas:

In Prospecton, repairs from the April storm were hampered by the weekend rain but are continuing.

A large power outage affecting Ntuzuma A and B has been attended to, while repairs are under way in Ntuzuma C and H.

In neighbouring KwaMashu, most sections were affected by an electricity outage, however power was restored in some sections this morning. Teams are on site attending to areas such as Isolezwe, P and G sections.

There is a power outage affecting some parts of Mariannridge and Pinetown. This is due to a cable fault which is being repaired. Technicians are on site and electricity should be restored in the next 24 hours.