The doors of an electrical kiosk on the sidewalk had been forced open and a sub-standard cable had been illegally connected to the municipal electricity system in a crude manner.
The cable, buried only a few millimetres under the ground, was traced along the sidewalk and along the length of a driveway that leads to a complex of about 13 rooms and flats built on a sub-divided property. The cable is at least 80 metres in length. No electricity usage meters could be seen on the property.
The technicians disconnected the cable and removed it early on Monday morning.
A technician explained that the illegally connected cable posed a serious danger to residents.
“The cable is far too thin to carry a load of this volume to the complex. The haphazard way in which the connections were done is cause for concern, as it not only poses a threat of people being electrocuted, but overheating due to a constant overload can cause a fire risk. The municipality loses thousands of Rands in potential income because of people stealing electricity in this manner,” said the technician.
It was also pointed out that a technician was nearly electrocuted recently while repairing an electrical kiosk due to residents tampering with the electricity supply.
The grid system allows technicians to disengage a particular section, but still switch over temporarily to the adjoining grid to enable an uninterrupted power supply to households.
“The power supply was isolated at that kiosk and I was about to repair the fault. Unbeknown to me, a resident opened another supply kiosk on the grid and reconnected the power supply. It was only because I double checked the system before I began with my work that I was not electrocuted,” he said.
Shoddy workmanship and uncompleted building operations at the premises in Davel Street have raised questions as to whether building plans for the complex were submitted to the relevant department of the municipality. It is also not known whether such plans, if submitted, were approved or if the building has passed an inspection by a building inspector. Enquiries in this regard have been submitted to the municipality.
