The Department of Water and Sanitation will implement a planned and proactive water outage of the Usutu subsystem, also known as the Usutu Government Water Scheme for 10 days starting from today 29 September to 8 October 2014. This planned outage is meant for the department to undertake maintenance, refurbishment and rehabilitation of the infrastructure in order to ensure sustainable supply of bulk water for the future.
The planned outage is necessary for maintenance and refurbishment of the infrastructure, some of which has been in operation for more than 40 years, implying that some might be reaching the end of its lifespan. This is compounded by the increased demand due to population growth.
The outage will affect water users in Ermelo in Msukaligwa Local Municipality, Kriel in Emalahleni Local Municipality, as well as the Camden, Matla, Kendal, Kusile and Duvha power stations. Contingency plans have been put in place in consultation with the affected stakeholders to ensure that communities experience minimal negative impacts of the outage and maintenance of the scheme.
During the outage, communities in the affected municipalities will have water supplied through water tankers and jojo tanks strategically placed for convenient access.
The affected communities can contact their respective municipalities and the Department for updates relating to the outage.
For more information:
Nelly Ndumo
Cell: 082 327 9509
Tel: 012 741 7302
Email: NdumoN@dwa.gov.za
Thabo Monaisa
Cell: 082 776 1020
Tel: 017 846 6000
Email: MonaisaT@dwa.gov.za
