What began as an intermittent disruption has escalated into a prolonged crisis, leaving residents and businesses in Melville without reliable water for weeks, and sparking growing anger over accountability, communication, and service delivery.
Tatiana Grabow, owner of Tatiana Music Studio on 5th Avenue, says the situation has become horrendous after 16 days of inconsistent water supply. While she considers herself fortunate to have installed two water tanks, even that solution has limits.
“After five to six days, if there’s no water coming in from Johannesburg Water, we also find ourselves in a crisis. I cannot even imagine how people do this who don’t have the finances to install tanks.”
Grabow described confusion and frustration over shifting explanations for the outages. “We’re not getting any answers. At first it was maintenance, then something else, then suddenly it’s a strike. We don’t know what to believe.”
Beyond inconvenience, she warned of broader consequences. “This is a basic human right. It’s affecting our mental health. People can’t sleep at night. I think about babies, the elderly, hair salons, restaurants – how do they cope?”
The crisis is also hitting small businesses financially. On the day of the interview, Grabow had to pay R2 000 to refill her two 1 000l tanks – an unexpected expense that forced her to abandon plans to invest in new equipment for her studio. “As a business owner, I now have all these extra costs. I was saving for microphones, and even a second-hand iPad. I can’t do that anymore.”
Darryl Gouws, chairperson of the Melville Residents Association (MRA), said the situation is rapidly becoming a humanitarian issue. “At this stage we are demanding accountability and clear communication. We have residents who, by Friday, will have gone four weeks without water.”
Gouws explained that both reservoirs supplying the area are currently on bypass, making the system vulnerable to disruptions across the wider network. A completion date that was initially set for April 2026 has reportedly been pushed back to December 2026, further compounding concerns.
With limited pressure in the system, community water tankers were meant to provide relief, but those have also run dry. “Our community water tankers are supposed to be filled by Johannesburg Water, but they’re not being filled. There is a constitutional mandate to provide water tankers when there’s no water.”
He added that the situation has become volatile. “We’ve got 15 000l for about 1 600 households, which means limiting residents to 50l per household per day. This morning, we had an angry crowd because the tanks were empty.”
Also read: Emmarentia residents bear the human cost as Johannesburg’s water crisis drags on
On February 8, JW highlighted that the Commando system is currently under severe constraints and subsystems are critically low. “As a result, poor pressure to no water supply is expected in most supply zones. This situation is due to a combination of reduced inflows and increased demand, which can include leaks and bursts. We are prioritising these as best as possible.”
The water utility gave progress on the following reservoirs:
- Crosby reservoir: Levels are low but supplying fairly. Most customers are receiving satisfactory supply, however customers in higher-lying areas may experience poor pressure.
- Brixton reservoir is currently low to empty. Outlets closed to build capacity.
- Brixton tower: Is low due to combination of reduced pumping and high demand. Poor pressure to no water is expected in higher-lying areas. Ongoing pumping will remain.
Hursthill 1 and 2 reservoirs are on bypass; they both rely on stable supply into the Commando system. Due to overall demand on JW systems, the supply is not stable and causing intermittent supply. Poor pressure to no water is expected in higher-lying areas. Hursthill 2 water situation investigation continues as communicated separately.
JW added that both Hursthill 1 & 2 reservoirs are augmented from Northcliff, Serpentine, and Stanford. “However, the system remains constrained, and both entities are in close contact and implementing necessary interventions.
Alternative water is provided on a regionally co-ordinated manner. JW regrets the inconvenience to customers, businesses, and public facilities, and remains committed to put necessary interventions to improve the situation.
The publication reached out to JW to ask for updates on the Commando system. Their response will be added once received.
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