The Nkambule family of Ext 14 in eMbalenhle is afraid that oil leaking from a transformer might catch fire and destroy their home.
They sometimes see smoke coming from the transformer. When this happens, the family remove their valuables such as cars, because they don’t know when it might explode.
Ms Joyce Nkambule said they even decided to use plastic containers in which to catch up the leaking oil before it flows towards the house.
“We have reported this transformer many times but the municipality doesn’t even bother to come and take a look.
“It is difficult to sleep at night because we are scared of the leaking transformer. It is installed inside our yard next to our house and our lives and property are in danger.
“We even reported it to our councillor who, in front of us, called municipality employees to come assist us. They promised to come but never pitched up. We are even afraid to park our cars inside the garage because of this transformer,” said Ms Nkambule.
The family claims the transformer had been installed three months ago.
Mr Philemon Mahlangu, Ward 8 councillor, said the transformer was reported to him and he then reported to the municipal electricity section.
He also said even the director of the Department of Energy at the municipality is aware of the said transformer.
However, the Govan Mbeki Municipality has been pleading with the public to refrain from illegally connecting electricity.
“Doing this poses great risk as it overloads the system, which often causes the power connection to trip or fail.
“It can also cause a fire,” said Mr Donald Green, acting head of communication at the municipality.
“Another problem with illegal connections is that when the municipality does electricity connections in the community, GMM looks at how much electricity is needed by the number of homes and a certain number of people per home in the area.
“When people connect illegally, they draw from the same equipment which was meant for a certain number of households, resulting in the equipment being overloaded and the system failing/tripping.
“This has been the case with most of the transformers that were replaced,” said Mr Green.
