Extensive water outage hits east wards as burst pipe halts supply
Residents across several eastern suburbs are facing a prolonged water outage after a major pipe burst forced the closure of reservoirs, with repair teams unable to proceed due to high pressure in the system.
A burst water pipe at the corner of January Masilela Drive and Rover Road has caused an extensive water outage across large parts of Pretoria east, with officials warning that restoration may take a long time.
According to Ward Councillor Andrew Lesch, the burst has affected most of Constantia Park, as well as parts of Newlands in wards 82, 83, 85 and surrounding areas.
He stated that reservoirs have been closed and several valves shut in an attempt to isolate the damaged section of pipe.
“The team is on site but cannot do anything at this stage because the pipe is still flowing and the pressure is still too high,” said Lesch.
“Bulk Water has been called in to assist and may have to close the supply at the Constantia Park Reservoir.”
Lesch said the situation has been escalated to the regional head of water and sanitation, with additional support requested on the ground.
He cautioned residents to prepare for a long outage while teams work to relieve pressure in the system.
In a later update issued by Water and Sanitation Region 6 through the Tshwane’s Region 3 WhatsApp channel, on Tuesday evening, the metro confirmed ongoing water supply interruptions due to the burst pipe.
A leaking fire hydrant
Constantia Park and Garsfontein were listed as affected areas, with the estimated time of restoration still unknown.
“The team is struggling to drain water out of the system. The bulk team is assisting to isolate the area,” the update stated, adding that repairs had not yet been completed.
In a separate incident, a massive fire hydrant burst at 306 Freesia Street in Lynnwood Ridge, causing damage to a local business, with water reportedly pouring into the premises.
Shop owner Susan Steinbach said they became aware of the burst late on Thursday night.
“We realised [there was a] pipe burst just after 22:00. We reported it and stayed on the premises. We heard a noise in the back room and my husband checked and saw water running in the backyard,” she said.
“The pipe had burst in the front. We lost a significant amount, but we still opened the shop at 09:00 on Friday,” Steinbach added.
Metro officials said they will continue monitoring the situation and assisting where possible, while residents are urged to use water sparingly until the supply is restored.
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