• Residents around Soweto and Central Johannesburg are set to be affected by a three-day planned maintenance run at Rand Water’s G20 pipeline.
• The maintenance will allow the construction of an alternative power supply to Mondeor Substation to Rand Water’s Eikenhoff Pumping Station.
• Johannesburg residents should remain water conscious as we head into hotter months.

If you’ve opened this article, you’re probably thinking the same thing we are: More Rand Water maintenance? That’s right, and this time the City of Johannesburg says it will last 56 hours, or around three days, from 3rd to 6th October 2024.

While wider areas will likely be affected by the maintenance, in Johannesburg specifically, the city’s water utility says that the maintenance will mostly impact areas in the Soweto Region and Central Region. This means people who live in these regions should start collecting water in anticipation of the 3rd because it is likely that water will be constrained.

It is also likely that the maintenance will be extended, so have backup water to last longer than the three days of repairs, especially if you live in areas around Soweto and Central Johannesburg.

According to Johannesburg Water, Rand Water will be seeking to conduct repairs on its G20 pipeline.

“The purpose of this work is to allow City Power to continue with their construction of an alternative power supply to Mondeor Substation to Rand Water’s Eikenhoff Pumping Station,” the utility explains on a post on X.

“A section of the bulk supplier’s G20 pipeline will be re-routed to tie into a recently diverted 900mm main at Mondeor substation.”

Affect areas include:

Soweto

• Power Park, Bushkoppies, Wastewater Treatment Works, SARS Office Park, Orland Power Station Compex, University of Johannesburg, Moletsane, Molapo, Phiri, Dhlamini, Moroka, Senaone, Mapetla, Tladi, Jabulani, Bheki Mlangeni District Hospital, Jabulani Mall, Jabulani Hostel, Central Western Jabavu, Mofolo South, Central, Zola 1, and Zondi.

Central

• Winchester Hills, Winchester Hills Ext 1 and 2, Gilview, Mondeor, Suideroord, Glenanda, Meredale, and Meredale Ext 25.

As we approach the warmer months of the year, Rand Water may increase its maintenance schedules or implement some form of water limiting. Last year in December, the supplier warned that it was not able to match the extremely high demand at the time and would likely collapse.

At the time, Gauteng was being buffeted by consecutive heatwaves. With the temperatures expected to increase exponentially, Johannesburg residents should keep conservation of water in mind.

[Image – Photo by Anandan Anandan on Unsplash]