Pretoria - A massive unplanned power outage in many parts of Pretoria east as a result of a vandalised Njala 132KV sub-station was successfully resolved early yesterday, the City of Tshwane said.
Residents were plunged into darkness after gunmen stormed the sub-station on Wednesday morning and stole cables at the facility.
A security guard working for the municipality was shot dead during the incident.
MMC for Utility Services, Themba Fosi, said the incident was a wake-up call for the national government “to make the sub-stations national key points so that they can be safely guarded and able to supply stable electricity to our residents”.
Yesterday, municipal spokesperson Lindela Mashigo said: “The City wishes to applaud the team of technicians from its Utility Services and Regional Operations Co-ordination departments who worked extraordinarily hard to restore the power supply that would have ordinarily have taken more days to reinstate, given the extent and complexity of the damage.”
He said the sub-station suffered an outage following a massive cable theft.
“This sub-station, which is an infeed facility that supplies Hatherley, Koedoespoort, Mamelodi 1, 2 and 3, Mooikloof, Wapadrand and Waltloo 1 sub-stations was left without power, resulting in an interruption of supply to some of the eastern areas of the municipality,” he said.
He said the management of the municipality had to focus all their efforts on ensuring that the outage was “attended to with speed, meticulously and without compromising the quality of work”.
The City had yet to quantify the cost implications of the theft and vandalism of the infrastructure.
Mashigo said: “The City also wishes to express its gratitude to the residents who were affected by this outage for their patience during the blackout, given the current circumstances of cold weather conditions.”
He said management urged customers to take ownership of municipal infrastructure and amenities as they were meant to benefit the City’s communities.
“To report any suspicious activities, contact the Tshwane Metro Police Department 24-hour line at 012 358 7095/6 or cable theft hotline at 080 011 2722,” he said.
He said a case of theft, vandalism and murder had been opened with the SAPS with a case number 157/07/2023.
Pretoria News