For illustration (Photo: Andrey Metelev via Unsplash)
Power supply to most residential areas in and around Pretoria that were affected by a huge outage caused when power towers fell on the N4 highway on Sunday evening has been restored.
More than 50 neighborhoods in the metro area were affected by the incident.
According to Selby Bokaba, spokesperson for the Tshwane metro, power has been restored at Mamelodi‑substation 2. However, some neighborhoods that get power from the Hinterland substation are still without power.
“The Hinterland substation was heavily vandalized and two of its main supply cables were stolen,” says Bokaba.
Power to Ikageng and some parts of Mamelodi Gardens and Buffer Zone has been restored, but due to cable theft, limited areas are still without power.
“Vandalism and theft of infrastructure are the main drivers of power outages in Pretoria and all residents, especially in Mamelodi, are requested to inform the municipality of suspicious activity at substations,” says Bokaba.
Kingsley Wakelin, mayoral committee member for corporate and shared services, and Themba Fosi, mayoral committee member for infrastructure and regional operations, met with city officials, ward councillors, the Tshwane Metropolitan Police (TMPD) and the police on Wednesday evening to try to tackle the power supply problems that cause crime.
The police and metro police have pledged to increase visibility and patrol danger zones to crack down on cable theft and other crimes.
“Residents are requested to use power sparingly to avoid possible interruptions during switchback.”
