“We can’t live like this”: Tshwane residents demand permanent fix to power outages

Lights out, again

For many residents in Pretoria North, power cuts are no longer an occasional inconvenience, they’ve become a frustrating routine.

When the lights went out for more than 36 hours recently, it wasn’t just about melted food in freezers or missed work-from-home deadlines. It was the final straw.

Now, communities across City of Tshwane are asking a bigger question: why does the same problem keep happening?

“Every two weeks, it’s something”

Charlene van Staden, a resident of Pretoria North, says outages linked to the Van Riebeeck substation have become alarmingly frequent.

According to her, faults seem to crop up almost every second week with the latest blackout stretching to nearly 38 hours.

For ratepayers, the frustration runs deeper than inconvenience.

There’s a growing feeling that residents are paying for services they’re not receiving and worse, that no long-term solution is in sight.

What the city says went wrong

City spokesperson Lindela Mashigo attributes the latest outage to a technical fault on a medium-voltage panel at the substation.

While technicians responded quickly and carried out initial repairs, things became more complicated when another fault was discovered this time on a cable within the network itself.

That second issue prevented full restoration, extending the outage even further.

It’s the kind of domino effect that many residents say they’ve seen before.

Cable theft: the problem that won’t go away

Beyond technical faults, there’s a bigger, more persistent issue at play cable theft.

Areas like Delmas Road have become hotspots, with repeated theft and vandalism damaging critical infrastructure. Over time, temporary fixes and added cable joints have made the system more fragile, especially during bad weather.

The impact stretches far beyond a single neighbourhood.

Mashigo says cable theft has disrupted electricity supply to key areas, including the Rietvlei Nature Reserve, nearby water treatment facilities, parts of Moreleta Park, and even traffic lights along major routes.

And it’s not cheap.

Years of copper cable theft have cost the city millions money that keeps going into repairs rather than long-term solutions.

A cycle residents know too well

In areas like Muckleneuk, near University of South Africa, the problem has reached extreme levels.

Ward councillor Shaun Wilkinson says critical service cables have been stolen or vandalised more than 100 times.

Each time, the same pattern follows:

• Theft happens
• The city repairs the damage
• Power is restored
• Then it happens again

“It’s like patching the same wound over and over,” Wilkinson argues.

Calls for a smarter, long-term fix

Instead of constant repairs, residents and local leaders are now pushing for a more permanent solution.

One proposal on the table is to move vulnerable underground cables into safer locations or replace them with overhead aluminium lines infrastructure that is less attractive to thieves and easier to maintain.

The idea isn’t new.

Wilkinson says discussions were held with the mayor last year, and there was agreement that change was needed. But so far, little has happened.

Now, the issue has been formally raised again through the city’s planning processes, putting pressure on officials to act.

The bigger issue: short-term fixes vs long-term thinking

At the heart of the frustration is a familiar South African dilemma the tension between quick fixes and lasting solutions.

Right now, most of the city’s spending is going toward operational costs: fixing cables, restoring power, responding to crises.

But critics argue that investing in capital projects like relocating infrastructure could break the cycle and save money in the long run.

It’s a tougher upfront decision, but one that could reduce outages, improve safety, and restore trust.

Public mood: fed up and vocal

Across community groups and social media, residents are making their voices heard.

Some are calling for accountability, others for better planning. Many are simply exhausted.

In a country already dealing with load shedding, unplanned outages like these hit even harder because they feel avoidable.

More than just cables

This isn’t just about stolen wires or faulty substations.

It’s about how cities plan, spend, and respond to ongoing challenges.

For residents in Tshwane, the message is clear: fixing the same problem over and over isn’t good enough anymore.

They want a solution that lasts, not just until the next outage.

{Source: The Citizen}

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