‘Critical Period’: City Power Warns of More Blackouts

City Power has warned Johannesburg CBD residents and businesses to immediately cut back on electricity usage or risk facing more blackouts, just days after a fire severely damaged underground infrastructure. Although power has been partially restored in areas like Braamfontein, officials say the current network setup is temporary and highly vulnerable to overload.

The alert comes after a secondary disruption on Tuesday caused by a flashover on makeshift interconnector cables being used while engineers work to replace nearly 1.2km of damaged high-voltage cables. Officials have pleaded for reduced demand to prevent system collapse.

The ongoing crisis began on 1 May when a fire broke out in an underground tunnel beneath the M1 Bridge near Smit Street, severely damaging 11kv and 88kv oil-filled cables between Fordsburg and Braamfontein substations. That blaze triggered a widespread blackout across the city’s central business district.

While electricity was restored to Braamfontein on Wednesday, City Power confirmed that the system remains unstable due to reliance on temporary interconnector cables. These stopgap solutions were installed to restore power urgently but are not built to support full load for extended periods.

“These interim solutions are not designed to carry massive amounts of load,” said City Power. “We strongly urge customers to lower their consumption to ensure these cables can hold until the damaged infrastructure is fully replaced.”

The restoration effort has included isolating two damaged 11kv interconnector cables and making overnight repairs to bring some streets back online. Areas affected included Smit West, Showground, Nico Mostert, Juta, Wolmarans, Jorrisen, De Korte, Ameshof, and nearby roads.

City Power confirmed it is currently replacing 1 200 metres of damaged 88kv cable within the M1 tunnel. The Johannesburg Roads Agency has cleared access through Carr Street, allowing engineering teams to begin installing scaffolding, preparing surfaces, fitting cable rollers, and joining new cable sections.

“The full rehabilitation of the network is expected to take approximately two weeks, depending on site conditions and environmental challenges,” the utility stated.

City Power added that all available resources have been deployed to stabilise electricity supply. “Our engineers, technicians, and support staff are working around the clock to rebuild the network and restore reliability,” it said.

Residents have been encouraged to report any faults through City Power’s customer platforms and to continue using power sparingly during this “critical period.”

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Sourced:The Citizen

Picture: The South African