Agricultural Holdings left in the dark as power giant and municipality fail to communicate
The affected areas include Jackaroo Agricultural Holdings, Elandspruit, portions of Seekoeiwater, Kromdraai, and areas extending towards the Middelburg border.
Residents of Ward 20 Agricultural Holdings are drowning in frustration after enduring a prolonged power outage since Friday morning, with no official communication from the officials.
The outage, which began around 06:30 on May 29, has now lasted more than three days, leaving many without electricity and water.
According to the ward councillor, Maureen Scheepers, when the blackout first occurred, residents were urged to report the fault through Eskom’s chatbot and call centre. However, the only response received was an automated message confirming that Eskom was aware of the outage and working on the problem.
No further formal updates were provided throughout Friday.
Scheepers stressed that all her efforts to secure verified updates were met with silence, even from the local municipality.
Over the weekend, conflicting timelines added to the confusion.
One resident was told power would be restored by Sunday evening. However, community representative Piet Wassenaar personally visited the repair site and found the overhead lines still lying on the ground.
Technicians informed him that restoration would require at least another 24 hours, dashing hopes of a Sunday resolution.
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The impact on the community has been severe, and frustrations are mounting as many residents stocked up on groceries and meat at the end of the month, only to suffer losses due to spoilage. Borehole water systems, which depend on electricity, have left households without both power and water, and those with generators have faced steep fuel costs, while farming operations have been disrupted.
The affected areas include Jackaroo Agricultural Holdings, Elandspruit, portions of Seekoeiwater, Kromdraai, and areas extending towards the Middelburg border.
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