Many households in Bredell, Pomona and parts of Glen Marais remain without power on day six, November 5 of the outage, and residents say the toll is mounting.

The Kempton Express is still awaiting further updates from the City of Ekurhuleni.

Wilmien Pretorius, a single mother, described the situation as heartbreaking.

“I’m the only breadwinner. I clean houses. I bought groceries for the month, and all the meat went off.

Also read: Cable theft DELAYS Pomona/Bredell power restoration

“We literally lost everything. How do I tell my children there’s no food?” she said.

Pretorius also fears for her family’s safety after security systems and gate batteries failed during the blackout.

Other residents report similar losses and mounting costs.

Wendy Clausen, who has lived in Pomona for 22 years, called this “probably the worst communicated outage” she’s seen and said many families simply cannot afford to replace spoiled food.

Also read: Power restoration in final testing phase for Pomona, Bredell

Annelie Smith told how she lost more than R7 000 worth of groceries while coping with a recent bereavement, saying residents need “honesty, real updates, not false hope.”

Parents and matric pupils have been badly affected: phones and laptops cannot be charged reliably and learners are struggling to study for exams by torchlight.

Natasha Jansen summed up the strain: “You can’t make food, you can’t shower, you have to rely on family and friends, the struggle is real.”

Also read: Power restoration in Pomona and Bredell now expected by 18:30

Local business owners and community groups are also counting the cost.

Rodney Gregory of the Power to Us Community Action Group said businesses are spending thousands daily on generators and described the city’s damage-claim process as “labourious and not user-friendly.”

He warned organised protests may follow if there is no meaningful response.

The Kempton Express has asked the City of Ekurhuleni for a further update on repair progress, timelines and compensation processes.