14-hour water outages across Johannesburg this week

Johannesburg residents are bracing for intense water supply outages starting this week.

These outages come as Rand Water embarks on an extensive infrastructure maintenance and meter replacement programme affecting multiple areas across the city.

The maintenance work, which includes both planned and unplanned activities, will impact water pressure and availability in various suburbs from June through July 2025.

Water outages in Johannesburg

According to Johannesburg Water, the meter replacement programme represents a critical infrastructure upgrade affecting the city’s bulk water supply systems.

The utility has warned that residents may experience poor pressure to no water during maintenance periods.

“After each maintenance has been completed, it may take between one and three days for the system to fully recover, and for normal water supply to return,” the utility stated.

Tuesday’s scheduled maintenance will see the Cosmo City Reservoir offline for an extended 14-hour period, from 6am to 8pm.

This work will impact the water supply to various streets in the Waterval area as Rand Water technicians replace magnetic flow meters, which are essential for monitoring water distribution.

The maintenance schedule intensifies on Thursday, 26 June, when the Forest Hill Reservoir will undergo meter replacement work, starting at 6pm and continuing through 8am the following morning.

According to the utility, this overnight operation is designed to minimise disruption to peak usage periods while ensuring the critical infrastructure upgrades proceed as planned.

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Planned infrastructure improvements

Beyond the immediate meter replacements, Johannesburg Water has announced a comprehensive planned maintenance programme targeting several areas.

On Wednesday, 25 June, residents under Region B will also face continued 14-hour outages.

The affected areas are:

• Newlands,
• Albertville,
• Montgomery Park, and
• Albertskroon

According to Joburg Water, these areas will experience water supply interruptions from 8am to 6pm as crews work to connect a new pressure-reducing valve system.

The maintenance programme extends into July with additional meter replacement activities.

Whiteridge North is scheduled for mechanical meter replacement on 3 July, with work running from early morning at 6am through to evening at 8pm.

Furthermore, Orlando Power Station South will undergo similar maintenance work on 21 July, with a shorter duration from 8am to 2pm.

The maintenance schedule concludes with extensive work at the Abbatoir and Market areas on 30 July, where magnetic flow meter replacement will require a full 14-hour maintenance window from 6am to 8am.

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Major bulk water infrastructure overhaul

Perhaps the most significant disruption facing Johannesburg residents is Rand Water’s major maintenance programme, scheduled to run from 30 June to 21 July 2025.

This extensive infrastructure overhaul will impact multiple Johannesburg Water systems simultaneously, potentially affecting water supply across broader areas of the city.

Johannesburg Water has acknowledged the severity of these disruptions and committed to providing alternative water supply arrangements.

“JW will make arrangements for alternative water supply at strategic points within the residential areas,” the utility indicated, to ensure residents maintain access to water during the extended maintenance period.

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Joburg water outage service delivery benefits

Despite the temporary inconvenience, Johannesburg Water emphasised that these infrastructure improvements will deliver significant long-term benefits to residents.

The utility has consistently stated that the maintenance work will result in “improved service delivery and enhanced continuity of water supply across affected areas”.

The meter replacement programme forms part of broader infrastructure modernisation efforts designed to improve monitoring and management of the city’s water distribution network.

These technological upgrades are expected to enable more efficient water management and reduce future service disruptions.

Johannesburg Water has advised residents to prepare for extended recovery periods following each maintenance activity.

Residents in affected areas are encouraged to store water in advance of scheduled maintenance periods and to monitor official communications from Johannesburg Water regarding the location of emergency water distribution points during the major July maintenance period.

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