Silverton power outages a nightmare for residents
“We also have elderly people in our area who depend on oxygen machines and if there is no power they are in dire straits The cost of portable oxygen cylinders is just too much and we are not a wealthy area at all. I do not know how these people cope."
Silverton extension five residents have called for answers following severe power outages plaguing the area and causing financial loss and frustration.
Resident Dorothy Rapson told Rekord she had been living in the area since 1974 and the past two years were the worst.
“We have had so many outages in the area; the latest one was four outages in four days. It is horrible.”
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“We just want the electricity issues to be sorted out as they occur way too much and we have no idea as to why there are constant outages.”
She said there a lot of people in the area work from home, and are severely impacted every time the power goes off.
“Certain ladies bake and run catering companies from home and cannot do anything. It is frustrating and hurting our pockets.
“The outages are also damaging our appliances and we feel we are being ignored by the metro.
“We also have elderly people in our area who depend on oxygen machines and if there is no power they are in dire straits The cost of portable oxygen cylinders is just too much and we are not a wealthy area at all. I do not know how these people cope.
“I am fortunate to have a small generator, so I can at least get my fridge connected and keep it on, but what about the rest of the community? If the power is gone for 24 hours, your stuff in the fridge goes bad.
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“I find myself wondering if I should really vote for the DA in the elections. I have lived here since 1974 and the past two years have been the worst in terms of outages.”
Rapson said the local veterinarian and doctor have threatened to move from the area as the constant outages are hampering their businesses.
She said this would impact negatively on the community as the doctor, vet and pharmacy play a big role and having them leave would mean the elderly would have to travel to other areas for medical assistance.
Juan Lee Olivier, who started the local neighbourhood watch group, reiterated Rapson’s concerns. He said the area needed serious attention and if the local pharmacy and doctors were to leave it would be catastrophic.
“The whole community knows them and some of us grew up consulting there and have longstanding relationships with them and they are a part of our families.”
Former utility services MMC Darryl Moss said Silverton extension five had pressing matters that were being dealt with by the department.
“The main feed load out of Waltloo is not well balanced, and this means the distribution system is unstable,” he said.
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“We are finalising a new substation and power lines at Hatherley, which should be completed by the end of this month.”
Moss said this would allow the metro to rebalance the load from Waltloo, and the system would be more stable.
“We are also busy with a programme to refurbish and upgrade substations, which has a budget of R152-million this year.
“In Region 6, Eersterust, Alwyn/Propshaft Roads, Murrayfield and Hinterland are all part of the project.”
He said contractors had been appointed and electrical panels procured and site work would start shortly.
This would make a big difference to the stability and availability of power in Silverton, he said.
Moss told Rekord theft at substations had caused the loss of much of the electrical earth protection, “which means that when there are trips, the outage is over a much bigger area.
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“We are busy with a project to replace the protection systems and batteries, and this will limit the outages to smaller areas.”
He said they still had to reroute the feeder cable that was badly damaged during the BRT construction. This project had already started.
While the security of cables, overhead lines and substations was actually the responsibility of the metro police and the SAPS, according to Moss, “the utility services department has made funds available to contract a security provider for beams, cameras, motion detectors, access control and other high-tech security”.
He said the tender was in the supply chain management process, and he had been pushing to get it awarded as a matter of urgency.
“At the regional level, there are a number of old cable faults that were never repaired properly. We have started a programme to go back to these and repair them properly.
“This will add stability to the network. We are also employing additional electrical maintenance teams so that repairs can be done more quickly.”
He said he realised the business disruption in Silverton and Waltloo was really not acceptable.
“The problem is huge, but within the funding available, we are busy with a number of initiatives that will improve the situation,” Moss added.
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