Eleven days after power was restored to Mackenzie Park, Rynsoord, New Modder, Western Extension, the CBD, as well as parts of Northmead and Rynfield, have once again been plunged into darkness.

According to Ward 27 Clr Lornette Joseph, large scale interruption occurred at 01:30 this morning (February 12).

Residents and business in affected areas are up in arms as unconfirmed reports indicate that an attempted cable theft on the 32kVA underground aluminium feeder cable, between the Morehill and CBD substations, has once again been tampered with.

Information shared on various community WhatsApp groups states that teams from the City of Ekurhuleni’s (CoE) energy department were on site just before 08:00 and that repairs to the cable were underway. No restoration time was available.

The latest outage comes on the heels of another attempted cable theft on the same line on January 24.

Electricity supply was restored on February 1.

On January 29, CoE spokesperson Zweli Dlamini issued the first official statement regarding the outage.

In the statement, he stated that the cable installed along Snake Road, between New Modder Road and Golden Drive, may have suffered further damage due to frequent underground blasting by illegal mining operations.

“Blasting-induced ground vibrations subject cable joints to repeated mechanical stress, which accelerates degradation of stress-control components and insulation interfaces.”

He said that International Electrotechnical Commission guidelines confirm that cable joints are the most failure-prone elements of underground networks, accounting for the majority of in-service failures.

“Uncontrolled blasting significantly increases the risk of unplanned supply interruptions,” he said.
“The recurring underground cable failures along the Snake Road area are closely linked to illegal mining activities.”

On January 30, Joseph handed a petition signed by more than 2000 Benoni residents, as well as an urgent motion to the council, in terms of Rule 90 of the CoE standing order by-law, to secure the electricity cables in areas where illegal mining is prevalent.

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Recommendations included:
• In accordance with industry-accepted norms, underground high-voltage cables must be installed at a depth of between 1.2m and 1.5m; however, in high-risk areas, including blasting or mining zones, it is recommended that cables be installed at 1.8m to 2.5m.

• Further mechanical protection, such as concrete encasement, duct banks or equivalent protective measures, should be undertaken.

• Until trenches are deepened and cables fully protected, the city must ensure that the EMPD and appointed security services patrol high-risk areas regularly, particularly during identified high-risk periods.

The motion was rejected and deemed not to be a matter of urgency.

Residents respond:
In an email sent to the Benoni City Times, a Northmead resident, who wished to remain anonymous, vented his frustration, saying: “Now the CoE is telling everyone that it can take up to 10 days to restore power.

“There are numerous pensioners living in the affected areas. What if one of them falls in the dark? What happens to their food? Will the metro replace their groceries or pay any medical costs incurred?”

Bernadine Farthing-McLean wrote: “Surely heads have got to roll. Since this morning, we have not had any further communication as to when power will be restored.

“This is totally unacceptable to tax-paying citizens.”

This is a developing story.

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