Mogale City water crisis drags on as restoration pushed to Saturday - TimesLIVE

Residents in parts of Mogale City who have already gone four days without water will have to wait even longer, with the municipality confirming that full restoration of supply is only expected by Saturday.

The disruption began on Sunday, when Mogale City’s water services department issued a public notice warning residents of possible water cuts after a power outage at Rand Water’s Vereeniging pump station reduced pumping capacity at Eikenhof to 50%.

Kagiso was the first area to feel the effects, with its reservoir already sitting at a critical 9% on Sunday. Azaadville and Rangeview were also flagged as “at risk”, with levels below 40% at the time.

By Wednesday morning, the situation in Kagiso had worsened sharply. According to figures supplied by the municipality, the Kagiso Tower reservoir had dropped to just 2%, while the main Kagiso Reservoir stood at 14%. Azaadville was recorded at 26% and Rangeview at 46%.

In a written response to TimesLIVE, Mogale City confirmed that Rand Water had restored power at the Vereeniging water treatment plant and that “pumping to replenish its reservoirs resumed on Sunday, September 13 at 10pm”.

However, supply to Mogale City itself remained cut off to give Rand Water’s own reservoirs room to recover. The municipality said its technical team met with Rand Water on Monday after an attempt to pump water directly into the Kagiso system proved unworkable because demand outstripped what was available.

“It was subsequently agreed that the outlet supplying Mogale City would be temporarily closed to allow Rand Water’s reservoirs to recover to 60%,” said the municipality.

Rand Water expects to reach that 60% mark by Thursday, after which supply to Mogale City will resume. But even then, residents should not expect an immediate return to normal.

“Water Services anticipates partial restoration from late Thursday into Friday, with full restoration expected by Saturday, as the municipal reservoirs and distribution networks will require time to recover once bulk supply resumes,” the municipality said.

In the meantime, the municipality said eight water tankers had been deployed to affected areas, with two more servicing rural settlements that are currently without water altogether. But there is no fixed schedule or published route.

“The tankers are not stationed at fixed points. They move between affected sections based on requests and guidance from ward councillors and community representatives, refilling as required and continuing to service affected areas until 10pm,” said the municipality.

That arrangement leaves a gap for the residents least able to chase down a moving tanker. Elderly and disabled residents who cannot walk to a communal collection point or have no way of knowing where a tanker has stopped on any given day have no dedicated service.

Asked what provision was being made for them, the municipality said tanker deployment was “co-ordinated through ward councillors and community representatives based on the needs of affected residents”, and that “residents requiring assistance with access to water are encouraged to advise their ward councillor or community representative, who can relay special requirements to Water Services”.

For families with elderly or housebound relatives in Kagiso, Azaadville and Rangeview, that means relying on a councillor to pass on a request rather than calling a dedicated number or checking a published list of tanker locations.

Mogale City said it would continue to monitor the situation and keep residents updated as more information became available.