Water supply in South Africa’s Joburg city is said to be restored gradually following a fire outbreak at Eikenhof pumping station that led to water shortage in the city.
Nico de Jager, a member of the mayoral committee for environment and infrastructure services confirmed the statement and added that water is being pumped to to Johannesburg’s reservoirs.
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Cause of fire
The cause of the fire at the substation is believed to be as a result of a deliberate act of sabotage which caused an explosion of an electrical transformer at Rand Water Eikenhof pumping station owned by Johannesburg City Power, severely damaging a transistor needed to supply power to the city’s waters infrastructure.
“The transformer appeared to have been maliciously damaged so that it would leak oil into the fire. We are calling for speedy investigation of the suspected arsonist,” said Johannesburg Mayor Herman Mashaba .
Depletion of water in the reservoirs
The mayor acknowledged the team that helped restore the power in record time despite the severe damage caused from the fire adding that the City Power was overwhelmed by the positive reactions from residents who applauded the efforts in their numbers on social media.
He also informed the residents of a slight delay before the supply of water normalizes owing to the depletion of water in the reservoirs.
“City Power investigators are still finalizing their probe. We are getting to the bottom of it. We will ensure there are proper remedial measures to ensure this doesn’t happen again. We assure you that water supply will be restored to everyone affected,” said the Mayor.
