Melville community calls for proactive communication and transparent water reporting amid water crisis
With the ongoing water disruptions in Melville and surrounding areas, residents are voicing their concerns and frustrations with Johannesburg Water's communication, which causes confusion with their timelines, updates and accountability for clearer communication.
Frustration is mounting in Melville and surrounding suburbs over repeated water outages, with residents saying they are not receiving clear communication about the causes, scale, or timelines for restoration.
Central to their anger is what they describe as a lack of transparency from Johannesburg Water (JW). Member of the Melville protest steering committee Josh Nel called the communication ‘basically non–existent.’ He added, “When information is provided, it’s corporate language that basically says nothing.”
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Conflicting explanations, from pump failures to issues at the Crosby pump station, have left residents confused and mistrustful. “We just want to know what is actually going wrong, the scale of the problem, and realistic timelines for restoration. Not knowing creates misinformation and even conspiracy-like thinking,” Nel said. He added that residents also want accountability when timelines are missed.
Community representative Gert Reed highlighted the longstanding nature of the problem. “Almost a year ago, the Melville community met online with senior JW officials about critical service delivery and communication. Assurances were given for proactive, honest feedback. That has not happened. Communication has become more obscure and repetitive, with no accountability. Residents’ rights to water are simply ignored.”
Reed claimed that JW continues to blame residents for excessive consumption rather than taking ownership of infrastructure failures.
Also read: Melville community rallies for water rights and reliable communication from Johannesburg Water
JW spokesperson Nombuso Shabalala said the team works closely with operations to compile daily communication notices. “The entity works constantly to provide up-to-date communication as much as possible. Over and above unplanned water disruptions such as reduced incoming bulk supply, JW also implements maintenance work on our infrastructure, which is essential for a sustainable and stable water supply.”
She explained that both planned and unplanned maintenance (such as burst pipes) is communicated through daily water notices, ward councillor WhatsApp groups, and JW’s social media platforms. Updates are also posted on X (formerly Twitter), Facebook, and WhatsApp channels to keep customers informed.
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