Broken electricity meters still need fixing after car crash in Malanshof
MALANSHOF – Residents are waiting for their electricity meters to be replaced after an accident destroyed the main electricity box last year.
Residents are still waiting for their electricity meters to be replaced after an accident on a busy road destroyed their electricity box last year.
On 20 November, two cars, reportedly travelling at high speed, collided on Hans Schoeman Drive, careened over the road barrier and flipped. In the process, the crash destroyed neighbourhood walls, electricity infrastructure and metering equipment.
Residents immediately reported the damage to the City, worried about safety, theft and correct billing.
A concerned resident, Sheldon Davis, said that he has tried to do the right thing by reporting the breakage to the correct department, but according to him, whenever he does so, he is told that he has contacted the incorrect department.
“We have reported this numerous times and still nothing has been done… We are at our wit’s end. Every month, meter readers come past the houses in the area to read the meters, asking where the meters are located… They realise there are no meters to read, so we get an estimate.”
Contractors who have come out to analyse the problem have told the residents that the meters cannot be replaced until the electricity box supplying them is replaced.
All other electrical wiring has been connected and the houses have power, but the broken electricity meters have not been fixed.
“After the accident happened, we put black plastic bags over the open meters and wires… They could have easily been stolen or caused a fire if it rained.”
According to Davis, the City put a temporary box over the destroyed one as they were waiting for new electricity box stock.
“The box is so old, broken and light that we can simply push it over. For all we know, the estimates that we are being given could be less than what we would be paying if it were fixed, but we just want to do the right thing.
“One of our biggest fears is that, once this is all fixed, we get slapped with a giant bill.”
Ward 104 councillor Mike Wood has confirmed that the affected Malanshof residents have made contact with him and that he has alerted the relevant departments of Johannesburg City Power to rectify the problem.
“I have notified the person who deals with metering directly and I hope to see this problem sorted soonest.”
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