Green Park residents in Douglasdale are calling for urgent action to address what they describe as deteriorating electrical infrastructure and a lack of maintenance in the area.

The concerns were raised by resident Chris Neumann, an electrician and engineer, who highlighted several issues, including unsecured electrical boxes, open mini-substations and overgrown vegetation around electrical infrastructure.

According to Neumann, residents have become increasingly frustrated by frequent power outages and what they perceive as inadequate maintenance of the electrical network.

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“We often have outages, but besides the outages, there is actually no maintenance being done on these boxes,” he said.

He pointed to several electrical boxes and mini-substations that are reportedly left open or unsecured, creating what residents believe are serious safety hazards.

Neumann said the situation is particularly concerning because members of the public, including children, have easy access to the infrastructure.

“As an electrician and engineer myself, many of these installations should be maintained in a way that makes them safe for people and the environment.”

He also expressed concern about invasive syringa trees and other vegetation growing around electrical infrastructure, saying this could affect accessibility for maintenance and potentially pose additional risks.

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“We’ve had to escalate matters up to the mayor’s office several times just to get streetlights fixed.”

He believes utility providers and relevant authorities have a responsibility to ensure infrastructure is properly maintained and secured.

Residents are now calling on Eskom to conduct inspections of electrical infrastructure in the area, address safety concerns and provide clarity on maintenance schedules.

Fourways Review has sent questions to Eskom regarding the maintenance of mini-substations and electrical boxes, vegetation management around infrastructure, and measures in place to ensure public safety.

An update will be provided.

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