Johannesburg Water is facing a debt of R636m due to limited funds and 140 water pipes burst daily. The city's water supply has been in crisis since late August, either from load shedding or storm impacts on the Rand Water system. The Gauteng provincial government has been pushing its departments and entities to honor their debt commitments, and Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi acknowledged the debt. He suggested establishing a debt management agency with the Department of Cogta to manage the debt.
Johannesburg Water chief Derrick Kgwale stated that the city's water supply had been in crisis since late August, either from load shedding or storm impacts on the Rand Water system. The cash-strapped city has begun stringent credit control on residents, stepping up traffic patrols, and ordering the city to reconnect a nursing home. Driving on city streets is hazardous, as roads are dug up whenever a pipe bursts and are frequently not filled back in.
Johannesburg Water enforced operational performance standards of attending to a minimum of at least major bursts and three water-related jobs per team per day. However, reinstatements often take weeks or months, or sometimes never get done. According to the city, there are roughly 4,190 pipe bursts every month, averaging about 140 a day.
Community groups have signed numerous petitions across Johannesburg as water cuts become normalized. Dr Ferrial Adam of Outa’s Water Community Action Network questioned whether damaging hailstorms were the reason reservoirs were empty, and the question must be asked: Have we gone beyond the tipping point?
Johannesburg Water engineer Logan Munsamy said the 18 critically low reservoirs were at various levels, explaining that full recovery could take weeks. The city is “throttling” reservoirs, which is why many residents complain about low pressure, diminished supply, and cuts at night.
