‘We just want electricity’

Residents of Thaba Tshwane are pleading with the City of Tshwane to restore power after a fire at the Zwartkop Substation left four areas in the dark.

This was the fourth prolonged power outage in Tshwane this year, caused by a fire or explosion at a substation.

City of Tshwane spokesperson Lindela Mashigo said earlier this week that Zwartkop Substation is fully operational, and power has been restored to all areas supplied. It followed what the City described as a gruelling eight-day repair process.

“The city’s energy and electricity technicians had to work around the clock through a strenuous cable installation and connection process. After completion of this process, the team had to deal with the daunting task of modifying the Cable End Box, which serves as a connector between the cables and the main transformer at the substation.

“The modification process was compounded by the end box’s original parts, which were initially manufactured in 1972. Some of the parts had to be imported from other countries,” he said.

What if you still don’t have power?

Mashingo said customers whose power has not been restored are encouraged to log a complaint as part of the normal reporting process.

Thaba Tshwane resident Pearl Ramashala said, despite reporting the outage numerous times, the area is still without power.

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Power finally restored to military hospital

The South African National Defence Force’s (SANDF) 1 Military Hospital, a national key point, is in the area and was only restored on Thursday evening.

“We have been without power for 12 days now, and it’s still off. Four areas were affected, and only three areas were restored. The City sent a team to reconnect the hospital and prison, but we, as residents, are still without power.

“Despite reporting this issue to the necessary authorities, there has been no resolution, and their departure has left us in a precarious situation.

“We have already suffered considerable losses over the past eleven days, and the continuation of this issue poses an even greater threat to the well-being of those in our care,” she said.

Ramashala said that the streets still affected by the prolonged power outage included Johannes Bekker Street, Helwan Road, General de Wet Road, Joubert Road, Fredericks Road, and Voortrekker Road.

“We have tried everything, logged calls, reached out to everyone. We even tried to have a peaceful protest, but we were intimidated to stop,” she said.

It was unclear if the resident’s power would be restored by the weekend.

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