Eskom brings electricity tips to Zandspruit

ZANDSPRUIT – Eskom kickstarts its National Electricity Safety Week in Zandspruit.

August 23, 2016

Gaahele Mokgoro 2 minutes read

Evylin Mpshe a safety officer from Eskom educates the residents about safe electricity usage.

Lindiwe Zisi came to live in Zandspruit in 1994 in the hopes of a better life, opportunities and owning a house. Almost 22 years later, Zisi and her three children still live in Zandspruit and still hope for a better future now that Eskom has pledged to supply Zandspruit community with electricity.

“Here in Zandspruit we use illegal connections to have electricity in our homes, what choice do we have? My children need to study at night so I pay a monthly fee to be illegally connected,” she admitted.

There are many stories like this in Zandspruit, hence Eskom kicked started their National Electricity Week in Zandspruit on 22 August, to teach the residents how to use electricity safely albeit illegal connections.

Eskom is embarking on a countrywide campaign, from 22 – 28 August, to educate SA on #ElectricitySafety. #EskomCares: https://t.co/c4X0wy89BE

— Eskom Hld SOC Ltd (@Eskom_SA) August 22, 2016

Cedric Maluleka from the Zanspruit Community Movement said that every three months there were on average three people who died in Zandspruit because of illegal electricity connections.

“We welcome Eskom’s visit to Zandspruit because now the residents can be educated on how to safely use electricity and know what to do in an emergency situation,” Maluleka said.

He pointed out that residents in Zandspruit were desperate as they too wanted to live a modern life. The solution to the illegal electricity connections he said was to legally electrify homes in Zandspruit. “We have been promised to be moved to Plot 42 by the City of Joburg and that is when residents here will be given homes with electricity,” he explained.

Overloading plugs can lead to overheating and can cause fires. #EskomCares https://t.co/fENKUV1Gc7

— Eskom Hld SOC Ltd (@Eskom_SA) August 22, 2016

Corporate occupational health and safety senior manager from Eskom, Jace Naidoo said that the aim of the campaign was to make communities aware of the basics of safe electricity usage and the risks associated with electricity theft, meter tampering, bypassing and illegal connections.

“We occasionally get reports of people being injured or losing their lives as a result of the unsafe use of electricity. As Eskom, we want to get to a point where we eliminate all injuries and fatalities caused by electricity, hence we are going to the communities to ask them to help us in this fight. We are aware of the biggest causes of these incidents and would like to appeal to our consumers to assist us by avoiding connecting illegally or making contact with low-hanging cables,” he said.

Details: Eskom, 086 003 7566.

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