Residents across parts of Dainfern are once again without water, after a burst asbestos cement (AC) pipeline forced Johannesburg Water to isolate the water supply on August 19.

The latest disruption comes barely a day after water was restored following a previous pipe failure that left some residents without water for several days.

Johannesburg Water confirmed, in a notice issued at 11:00 on their social media page on August 19, that its teams were attending to a burst on a 375mm AC pipeline in Dainfern Estate. The utility said the water supply had been isolated to allow technical teams to carry out repairs.

Read more: Johannesburg Water finally fixes Bryan Brook Estate leak

The affected areas include Dainfern Estate, Dainfern Ridge, and Dainfern Valley.

“The pipeline has been drained, and excavation is currently underway to expose the affected section and assess the extent of the damage,” Johannesburg Water said.

The utility said alternative water supplies were being provided through tankers allocated to various locations in Dainfern to assist affected residents while repairs were underway. However, there was no estimated time of restoration at the time of the notice.

Ward 94 councillor David Foley was again at the site on August 19 as Johannesburg Water’s management and technical teams worked on the latest break. Foley said the pipe had broken during the night of August 18, resulting in another excavation to expose the damaged section. “Workers are preparing to replace the broken section with plastic piping.”

According to Foley, the latest break has resulted in an even wider area being affected because an isolation valve near Dainfern Square is not functioning properly. He said this means the utility cannot isolate only the immediately affected section, resulting in water being switched off across a larger area.

The latest outage follows a difficult few days for residents. Foley said the previous water interruption began around midday on August 13, with supply only returning on August 17. “Residents then had water for roughly a day before another pipe burst on Tuesday night. These repeated failures have left residents frustrated and exhausted.”

He said the previous repair was also complicated when excavation work damaged a power cable, leaving parts of Dainfern without electricity while other sections were without water. Power was later restored.

Also read: Johannesburg Water finally fixes Bryan Brook Estate leak

Despite the repeated disruptions, Foley praised Johannesburg Water’s management team for its response, noting that senior officials, including the regional and operations managers, had been present at the site during recent repairs. “They’re doing a great job,” Foley said, while stressing that the underlying problem needed to be addressed.

Johannesburg Water urged affected residents to use the alternative water supplies being provided while technical teams continue working on the damaged pipeline.

The utility said further updates would be issued once the extent of the damage and the required repair work had been established.

Follow us on our Whatsapp channel, Facebook, X, Instagram and TikTok for the latest updates!