Brackendowns elderly couple cries foul after weeks of darkness
A Brackendowns couple has finally had its power restored after weeks of being in the dark.
An elderly couple has breathed a sigh of relief though crying foul after going for at least three weeks without electricity.
The couple had to wait for almost a month following numerous calls to have their electrical complaint attended to.
The complainant told the Alberton Record that only on June 21 did the City of Ekurhuleni’s energy department attend to the problem, which only took a minute to resolve.
“On the morning of May 30, an electrician was working on our house’s electrical system. Due to his mistake, a fuse in the municipal electrical box blew. We immediately contacted the municipality to rectify the situation. We were told that possibly this would be rectified after hours on the same day. Nothing had been done after 22 follow-up calls,” he said.
Throughout all the calls, he said they were promised, reassured and lied to. He said at least twice they were told the problem had been rectified and reconnected.
“We are an elderly couple, both with serious health issues. We have had to give away food from our fridge and freezer. For the last sleepless nights, we have sat in the dark fearing that the criminal elements will take advantage of the situation the municipality had left us in,” he explained.
He also said they went to see the city’s acting electrical engineer, who was not available at the time, as their offices were closed in their entirety.
“This situation is at the very least unacceptable. Where are we going when honest legal rate-paying members of society are completely ignored and lied to by the very people that enjoy the benefits of employment in the municipality on the rates we pay?” he asked.
City of Ekurhuleni spokesperson, Zweli Dlamini, stated that the cause of the outage was not related to ageing infrastructure from their side.
“The trip was caused by the client’s electrician working on their installation on the inside. The client can submit a claim to our insurance department where it will be accessed,” he said.
