- Seven municipalities in KZN face crippling water cuts due to load reduction.
- SA is in the grip of stage 5 load shedding with power outages of up to six hours a day.
- The country is facing one of its worst energy crises since 2008.
Hundreds of thousands of KwaZulu-Natal residents and tourists are likely to celebrate Christmas without running water, as electric motors are unable to pump water due to loss of charge.
On Sunday, state water authority Umgeni Water announced that the load cut was affecting the supply of drinking water to municipalities within Umgeni Water’s service area.
The entity said that hundreds of thousands of consumers within the municipalities of uMgungundlovu, Msunduzi, iLembe, Ugu, Harry Gwala, King Cetshwayo and eThekwini were unable to receive drinking water during and after the load cut.
This comes as the country continues to deal with one of its worst energy crises in years with multiple power outages every day.
Eskom spokesman Sikhonathi Mantshantsha declined to comment.
In a statement, Umgeni Water complained: “Eskom applies several stages of load shedding and lately increased load shedding to stages 5 and 6, creating power outages in some cases for up to six hours per day.
“When the power supply is restored, the supply mechanisms, both in the bulk and reticulation networks, take at least an hour to come back to full operation. Meanwhile, what little storage is left in the reservoirs begins to empty and there is no accompaniment”. resupply. This leads to supply interruptions to consumers.”
In the Mgeni System, the largest system in KwaZulu-Natal, the areas most affected by water supply failures due to power outages are Vulindlela, Mpophomeni and Hilton, all located in upland areas dependent on the Howick West Reservoir for transferred potable water. through a pumping system.
Other areas not receiving water during the load cut are KwaHaza, KwaChief and Mashingini, Umgeni said in a statement.
READ | Large parts of the Eastern Cape face a dark Christmas as Eskom fights to restore power
He added that all areas in Impendle were affected while in the Mpofana system, Bruntville often lacks water supply when power outages occur.
The Midmar Pump Station and the Midmar Water Treatment Plant were excluded from load shedding and raw water transportation and treatment were not affected.
When power outages occurred, the downstream Millfalls Reservoir was able to receive water from the Midmar Water Treatment Works and, in turn, was able to transfer the water to Howick West Reservoir, the entity revealed.
The water remained in Howick West Reservoir until power was restored, he explained.
As a result, the reservoirs of the uMgungundlovu district municipality and the local municipality of Msunduzi in Vulindlela were unable to supply water to consumers in the vast area of Vulindlela.
Water was pumped from the Groenkloof Reservoir in Hilton to Vulindlela.
Hilton was affected when power outages occurred.
The reservoir at Richmond was also based in the supply area of the Midmar Water Treatment Works.
It was affected because there also has to be pumped water.
READ | Building rented by Eskom in Gqeberha has a power outage due to non-payment by the landlord
The areas within Richmond that were affected by the lack of water supply were Ndaleni, Nhlazuka and Mbutshisweni.
Water from the Midmar Water Treatment Works is gravity fed to the eThekwini metro which can receive a full supply during load shedding for distribution to various areas including Mid-Illovo, Eston, Umbumbulu and Hillcrest.
The DV Harris water treatment plant, on the outskirts of Pietermaritzburg and part of the Mgeni system, continues to bear the brunt during power outages.
This plant supplies the seven Umgeni Water reservoirs in the uMshwathi region by pumping.
All bulk receiving and crosslinking reservoirs at uMshwathi run out of water.
READ | Load reduction shuts down single mom’s online teaching business after students quit over disruptions
In Durban’s central region, the Durban Heights Water Treatment Plant has two inlets, one of which has been excluded from load shedding.
The exemption includes all production units, pumping wells and the KwaDabeka pumping station.
The section that has not been excluded affects the feed to the Pinetown Pump Station, which means it cannot be pumped.
The Wiggins interconnected water treatment plant in Bonella, Durban, has been exempted from load shedding.
This system supplies drinking water to downtown Durban. It also augments the Amanzimtoti water treatment plant through a gravity feed and pump system.
At times of load shedding, the transfer of water from the Wiggins Water Treatment Plant to the Amanzimtoti Water Treatment Plant is interrupted, exacerbating the deficit that already exists at the Amanzimtoti Water Treatment Plant.
The Umzinto water treatment plant loses approximately 30% in potable water production during load shedding periods.
READ | Power outages ‘destroyed her soul’: Teen dies after turning to solar-powered oxygen to stay alive
When load shedding occurs, the generators are used in what becomes a slow and lengthy process that often results in less than required volume outputs.
Total recovery time after discharge for the south coast systems is, on average, two hours.
Water treatment plants in the King Cetshwayo district that are operated and managed by Umgeni Water are affected during power outages because they do not have backup generators. This means that the potable water that is produced cannot leave the plants and the Water Services Authority does not have adequate water to distribute to consumers in Eshowe and surrounding areas.
The Ixopo water treatment plant, within the Harry Gwala district municipality, remains fully operational because it uses a diesel generator during load shedding.
