Residents across wards 82 and 56 have had enough of recurring power outages, and are now calling on the Tshwane metro to urgently trim trees interfering with electricity infrastructure.

A call led by resident Janco Fourie is gaining momentum across suburbs, including Menlo Park, Ashlea Gardens, Alphen Park, Maroelana, Hazelwood, Waterkloof and Lynnwood, where overgrown trees continue to damage power lines and disrupt electricity supply.

According to Fourie, tree branches encroaching on overhead cables have led to repeated outages, low voltage issues and increased safety risks due to poor lighting.

“Such interferences result in power outages and damage to power lines, which then cause significant disruptions to the community and increase safety and security risks,” he said.

Frustrated by what they describe as a lack of response from the municipality, residents say they are willing to step in and assist, and even offer their own equipment if the metro can provide minimal support.

Fourie said that at a recent public meeting with the electricity department, residents proposed trimming the trees themselves, provided the power is temporarily switched off to ensure safety.

“Some community members have even offered to use their own cherry pickers to speed up the process,” said Fourie.

However, despite these efforts and ongoing engagement, no progress has been made.

Ward councillor Tiaan Dippenaar said the issue has been reported to the electricity department since November last year, with little to no response.

“In my ward, about 900 trees are interfering with overhead lines. This is causing low voltage outages, mostly due to trees growing into power lines,” said Dippenaar.

According to Dippenaar, residents and associations are continuously reporting these problems, but the city seems unable to address them.

He added that he and fellow councillor Siobhan Muller met with the electricity director, who agreed to assist, but the promised action has yet to materialise.

“We offered community support, including organising tree cutting. We just need a technician to turn off the power. However, two months later, there has been no progress,” he said.

He said that several community groups, including those in the Old East areas such as Brooklyn, Bailey’s Walk, and Brooklyn Central East, are ready to assist.

“There are residents willing to help cut the trees. We have active communities, and I’ve spoken with community leaders, but we still lack commitment from the city,” Dippenaar said.

Dippenaar stated that while residents are willing to help, the responsibility ultimately lies with the municipality to maintain infrastructure and prevent outages.

With strong winds in recent weeks worsening the situation, they warn that delays in addressing the issue could lead to further damage and higher repair costs.

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