Power to the people?

The Dolphin Coast community has long since made peace with the fact that occasionally there will be power outages, however residents of Sheffield and Salt Rock seem to be in the dark more often than many other areas.

“We often experience multiple outages every week,” said Tommy Naicker, a resident of Sheffield Manor Estates, though he did admit the recurrence of outages had dropped off slightly over the past few weeks.

“Who is supposed to pay for my appliances when they stop working due to these continued outages?”

Also read: Dolphin Coast shrouded in darkness

KwaDukuza municipality media liaison Sipho Mkhize told the Courier KDM was aware of the ongoing electricity problems in the area.

“Many of the outages experienced in the areas mentioned were largely attributed to construction works of the Elaleni, Zululami and Brettenwood estates,” Mkhize explained.

“During the construction works there was at times unintended interference with the power lines.”

Furthermore, Mkhize said the municipality recognised that the area network needed upgrading, especially the switch gear at Umhlali village.

“Our planning to rectify this will be devised in this current financial year, and construction is earmarked to begin in the next financial year.”

He also warned that they expected there might be similar disruptions when the fibre lines are being upgraded as the trenches dug to accommodate the lines are dug close to electricity lines.

Meanwhile, street lights across Ballito are still a concern for many homeowners.

Ward six councilor Tammy Colley told the Courier she had raised the issue with the municpality.

“The feedback I received indicated there was not enough in the budget to have all the lights up and running by June as they had previously hoped,” she said.

“KDM is now aiming to have a closed quote out within the next three months for a contractor to undertake repairs and maintenance of street lights.

There was some hope recently that the UIP would be allowed to take over repairs and maintenance of street lights in Ballito, after an outcry regarding the lack of lighting on the promenade.

However, the UIP’s Thierry Leclezio said they were only going to be responsible for the lighting on the promenade though they would continue to monitor and report faulty lights in other areas.

In order for action to be taken as soon as possible, residents should either contact their relevant ward councillor or ward committee member to report faulty lights.

Reports can either be sent directly to the relevant ward councillors / committee members, or in the case of ward 22 via the Sheffield Beach and Salt Rock Community Forum on Facebook.

Residents can contact Malcolm Hubner (083 250 9787), Tammy Colley (082 894 7808) or Tommy du Toit (082 563 7221), or visit the municipal offices.

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