Frustration reached a boiling point in Midrand as residents endured prolonged water outages that had left taps dry for more than two weeks.

Residents continue to have little clarity on when the normal supply will be fully restored while navigating life with buckets and bottles to get water at any nearby station of water tankers. Their anger spilt onto the streets on February 3 when residents held a protest at the corner of Vodacom Boulevard and Lever Road, demanding accountability from the City of Johannesburg and its water entities after going up to six consecutive days without water.

Residents also claimed that they were receiving limited communication from authorities and ward councillors. They further pointed fingers at Johannesburg Water and Rand Water, accusing the entities of failing to provide timely and transparent updates.

Read more: Government targets 90% reservoir capacity by Sunday, amid Gauteng water crisis

Rand Water had previously confirmed that the outages were triggered by a power disruption at the Palmiet pump station on January 27, which affected supply to the Klipfontein reservoir complex. This led to critically low reservoir levels and widespread water interruptions across the Johannesburg Water Midrand system and other parts of Gauteng.

During the protest, resident Charlene van Onselen said the lack of communication and visible intervention had left communities feeling abandoned.

“There are not enough water tankers, no notices, no consistency, we are really living in a survival state… And our greatest fear is that the months are going to continue like this. We need answers, we need accountability, we need proper plans, we need transparency, we need water; we are all feeling this impact greatly. So we are here gathered today expressing that feeling,” added Van Onselen.

Residents said the water crisis had become a recurring pattern, with Midrand often among the last to see supply restored when outages occur across Gauteng. Similar frustrations were voiced in December last year, when many households spent part of the festive season without water.

Another resident, Thembi Maluleke, said, “It is the second time we are going days without water; in December we suffered the same fate… We really want answers; we want a resolution. Our shops cannot provide us with enough drinking water. The tankers are not enough for the number of people we have in Midrand.”

“[The councillors] have not been helpful. If it were not for us actually coming here today and speaking to them, I don’t know when our next update was going to be, and that is my personal experience. Maybe others have gotten regular updates, but I have not from our councillors directly.”

Also read: UPDATE: Water supply improves across Midrand, Grand Central still affected

However, not all residents shared the same experience. Lynne Maclean said councillors had been doing their best to relay information as it became available. “The councillors do their best. The information they do get, they send out straight away,” she added.

Beyond households, the water outages have also disrupted education. Several local schools have reportedly been forced to release learners early or send them home due to non-functioning toilets and a lack of water. Resident Bonginkosi Nhlapo said, “Our schools are affected. Children are staying home because the toilets are not working [have no water]… Learners are being released early.”

Midrand ward councillors Lerato Mphefo (Ward 112) and Annette Deppe (Ward 132) said they have been engaging the water entities and community members in an effort to resolve the crisis, including a community meeting held on February 2.

“Councillors are not employees of Johannesburg Water or Rand Water,” said Mphefo. “As a councillor, I have been on the ground, coordinating water trucks, responding to residents nonstop, and attending meetings with Johannesburg Water. We have also taken these issues to Rand Water before, as the DA, warning them about infrastructure challenges and lack of maintenance…”

City promises bigger water storage for Midrand.

Following the February 3 protest, the City of Johannesburg provided an update on the situation during a media briefing at the Johannesburg Water Midrand Depot in Carlswald.

Executive Mayor Dada Morero announced infrastructure upgrades aimed at preventing future crises, including the construction of four new reservoirs and three water towers in Midrand, one of which is nearing completion. The mayor was joined in the media briefing by Deputy Minister of Water and Sanitation David Mahlobo, MMC for Environment and Infrastructure Services Jack Sekwaila, and other officials.

Also read: Midrand residents protest ongoing water crisis

“I want to announce to the residents of Midrand in particular, and I think all of you are aware of the development that is happening in the area of Midrand, whether it’s residential or business, which therefore required ourselves to also increase the capacity of reservoirs. And in that regard, we are building four reservoirs and three towers in Midrand. One tower is almost at completion,” said Morero

Mahlobo acknowledged the hardship faced by residents and outlined the sequence of system failures that led to the crisis, including multiple power trips at Rand Water facilities and a major pipe leak affecting a reservoir carrying about 250 megalitres of water.

He emphasised the need to increase storage capacity and improve coordination between Johannesburg Water, Rand Water and his department.

“If we don’t actually create enough storage, [then] if the system fails and you don’t have water in your storage facility for 72 hours, you can immediately start to see the impact.”
Mahlobo also urged residents to avoid hoarding water and to use the supply sparingly as the system stabilises, warning that excessive usage could delay full recovery.

As of February 8, Johannesburg Water confirmed that the Midrand system remained constrained, with most reservoirs supplying fairly while a few continued to operate at critically low levels.

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