City Power suspends services amid staff being held hostage

City Power has suspended electricity services to Kanana Extensions 4 and 5 following escalating incidents of technician intimidation and hostage situations across Johannesburg.

The utility condemns a surge in violent confrontations that have seen staff threatened, assaulted, and held captive while conducting routine maintenance work.

The service suspension comes after community members stormed the Midrand Service Delivery Centre, blocked gates for hours, and prevented technicians from addressing power outages in the area.

City Power technician held hostage during meter audit

On Thursday morning, a City Power contractor was held hostage and physically assaulted at a domestic property in Florida, Roodepoort.

The technician was conducting a meter audit and disconnection when the situation turned violent.

The customer’s account showed arrears exceeding R56 975. When informed of the disconnection, the customer allegedly became aggressive and confined the technician to the property.

“The suspect reportedly locked the gates, assaulted the technician and threatened him with a firearm,” said Isaac Mangena, City Power’s Public Relations and Communication general manager.

The customer claimed to have signed an Acknowledgement of Debt and paid R30 000, but no proof of payment was available on-site.

“The technician was merely following protocol and should never have been subjected to such violence,” Mangena added.

While the contractor has not yet filed formal charges, Mangena stated that City Power strongly condemns the incident and urges customers to resolve disputes through official channels.

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Illegal electricity syndicate dismantled

The Florida incident followed a major enforcement operation on Wednesday, 9 July 2025, in Tshepisong, Roodepoort.

City Power’s Revenue Protection Unit, working with the Johannesburg Metropolitan Police Department, dismantled an illegal electricity network operating from a private residence.

Officials discovered the home was illegally supplying power to nearby households and a newly established informal settlement through underground and overhead cables.

A vigilant resident had alerted authorities to the operation.

“Upon inspection, City Power technicians found that live supply lines had been tampered with and diverted from a municipal pillar, posing extreme danger to human life and infrastructure.

“Around 250kg of illegally installed cables were removed,” Mangena explained.

The homeowner allegedly operated a backyard micro-utility, charging neighbouring residents for access to stolen electricity.

While the suspect remains at large, investigations continue, and the matter will proceed to prosecution.

Service suspension following community blockade

Community members from Kanana Extensions 4 and 5 forced City Power to suspend services after blocking the Midrand Service Delivery Centre.

The residents prevented technicians from leaving the facility, disrupting repair work across multiple areas.

City Power technicians had responded to an outage the previous night and discovered the fault required daylight repairs on overhead lines.

The task was scheduled for the day shift team.

“However, while our teams were preparing to conduct the repairs and sourcing the necessary materials, community members blocked the gates and refused to let them leave the SDC, further delaying the process of repair work in that area as well as in other areas,” Mangena said.

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Pattern of City Power staff intimidation across Johannesburg

Similar incidents have occurred across the city in recent weeks.

On Wednesday, electricians dispatched to Rabie Ridge were held hostage and threatened by residents, only being released after the security team’s intervention.

Two weeks ago, services to Mayibuye were suspended for nearly a week after technicians faced threats and hostage situations while installing prepaid meters.

Three weeks ago, City Power technicians and a contractor were held hostage at a Klipfontein substation during a power outage.

“Due to these continued safety risks, City Power has taken a decision to temporarily suspend services in Kanana Extensions 4 and 5, where technicians can no longer operate safely,” Mangena stated.

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CEO condemns lawlessness

City Power CEO Tshifularo Mashava expressed deep concern over the escalating intimidation campaign against utility staff.

“We are deeply concerned by the rising trend of intimidation and threats against our teams. No employee should be forced to work under the fear of being attacked.

“These acts of lawlessness are not only criminal, but also jeopardise our ability to deliver services to those who need them most.

Mashava said they would not put their staff’s safety at risk and would not hesitate to withdraw them from any dangerous situations.

Illegal connections compound service challenges

The affected areas are known hotspots for illegal connections, meter tampering, and low vending patterns, which frequently cause overloading and repeated outages.

Many communities have not been normalised through smart prepaid meter installation, with efforts often meeting resistance.

Mangena noted that these issues have been raised with community leaders, and engagement continues to find lasting solutions.

“Some of these communities have not yet been normalised through the installation of our smart prepaid meters, and efforts to do so have often been met with resistance, further compounding service delivery challenges,” he explained.

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Zero tolerance policy on City Power staff safety

City Power views these incidents as symptomatic of growing risks facing Johannesburg’s electricity grid, whether through violent obstruction of disconnection efforts or profit-driven illegal distribution schemes.

“Such acts compromise the safety of personnel, overload the network, and deprive paying customers of a reliable supply,” Mangena said.

They maintain a zero-tolerance approach to threats against technicians, infrastructure tampering, and illegal connections.

It said services will only resume once safe working conditions are restored.

“We urge all community members to refrain from these unlawful actions and to allow City Power technicians to do their work safely, including the vital task of normalising these areas for long-term energy stability,” Mangena concluded.

City Power encourages community members to report suspicious or unlawful activity and emphasises that staff safety remains non-negotiable in service delivery efforts.

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