Joburg water crisis leaves residents without supply for nearly two weeks

With taps running dry for more than 10 days in parts of Johannesburg, residents are struggling to meet basic household needs as the city’s water crisis continues just days before the 4 November local government elections.

For affected households, the prolonged outages have made everyday tasks such as cooking, cleaning and maintaining sanitation increasingly difficult. Residents are also questioning the state of municipal service delivery as they prepare to head to the polls.

In Ivory Park, resident Fana Mabalane said his household had gone seven days without water, describing the situation as unbearable.

“This is extremely unbearable. There has been no water since last week. What are we supposed to do now? Imagine our sanitation system, especially with no water. This is wrong,” Mabalane said.

Residents raise concerns over service delivery

Frustration is growing in affected communities, with some residents questioning why reliable water supply remains a challenge so close to election day.

One resident, who asked not to be identified, said the outages had added to existing service delivery concerns in the township.

“We are only days away from the local government elections, but this is what we get from the very same people we are supposed to vote for. I am really disappointed. We can’t live like this,” the resident said.

The resident also pointed to other problems, including uncollected rubbish, sewage flowing through parts of the township and deteriorating roads.

The complaints come as Johannesburg Water works to stabilise a supply network under significant pressure.

Johannesburg Water throttles 12 reservoirs

Johannesburg Water has been throttling supplies at 12 reservoirs to give struggling systems an opportunity to recover amid high demand.

The utility recently reported an improvement in some affected areas following intensified technical interventions. However, it warned that residents should not expect water supplies to return to normal immediately.

In a statement, Johannesburg Water said restoration was under way across affected parts of the Sandton, Midrand, Randburg/Roodepoort, Commando, Central and Soweto systems.

The utility explained that supply would be restored gradually to prevent the network from becoming overwhelmed and to avoid draining reservoirs and water towers.

Technical teams are monitoring the affected systems, while engagements with stakeholders continue.

Mayor expected to address the water crisis

Executive Mayor Dada Morero is expected to brief the media at 2pm on the ongoing water crisis.

The briefing comes as residents continue to deal with prolonged outages and uncertainty over when reliable supply will return.

For households that have spent days without running water, the immediate concern remains access to an essential service, while the growing frustration has placed service delivery firmly in the spotlight ahead of the local government elections.

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Source: IOL