Joburg water outages: Affected areas and new restrictions explained

Johannesburg Water said severely constrained supply systems were leaving residents in several parts of the city with little or no water.

On Wednesday, the utility said high demand and heavy draw-off were stopping reservoirs and towers from recovering.

It also proposed tougher Level 1 restrictions to cut demand by about 15%.

“This is resulting in low water pressure, intermittent supply and prolonged outages in various areas,” Joburg Water stated.

Areas hit by low pressure and outages

The utility said seven groups of systems were affected.

In the Commando area, Crosby, Brixton and Hursthill were hit, while the Central group covered Parktown, Berea, Yeoville, Randjieslaagte, Linksfield and Alexander Park.

Bryanston, Illovo and Morningside in Sandton were also named, along with Grand Central, President Park and Erand in Midrand.

The Randburg-Roodepoort group included Honeydew, Cosmo City and Waterval Tower.

Power Park, Chiawelo, Meadowlands, Zondi, Crown Gardens and Eagles Nest were listed under Soweto and southern areas.

Lawley, Ennerdale, Lenasia and Orange Farm made up the Deep South group.

“The extent of interruptions varies across these supply areas, with higher-lying areas particularly impacted when reservoir and tower levels decline,” the utility noted.

It added that relief would not come at the same pace everywhere.

“Recovery will vary between systems and will depend on sustained inflows and reduced demand,” Joburg Water explained.

How Joburg Water is responding

Crews were also carrying out leak detection, burst pipe repairs, pressure management and infrastructure rehabilitation to cut water losses.

The utility said it was reworking the network at the same time.

“Technical teams are actively reconfiguring the network and implementing targeted throttling to balance available supply, support reservoir recovery and stabilise distribution across affected systems,” Joburg Water said.

The utility described what that work meant in practice.

“These interventions involve adjusting water flows and pressures to manage available storage and improve supply to struggling parts of the network,” it clarified.

Proposed Level 1 water restrictions

Under the proposal, irrigation would be banned between 6am and 6pm.

Hosepipes would need spray nozzles, and hosing down hard surfaces and dampening building sand would be prohibited.

City properties and entities would also stop irrigating parks, public spaces and gardens.

The Johannesburg Road Agency and its contractors would use treated effluent from any of the six wastewater treatment works instead of drinking water for road construction.

Joburg Water and its contractors would do the same for jetting.

Supply to high-consumption areas could also be reduced where other restrictions failed to cut demand.

The utility said residents would not be left without help.

“These measures will be supported by safeguards to protect access to basic water supply and provide alternative supply to affected essential services,” Joburg Water added.

Level 2 restrictions could follow if demand kept rising after implementation.

“Any further restrictions will be communicated through official channels before implementation,” the utility promised.

What residents and businesses should do

Joburg Water urged residents and businesses to cut water use and avoid non-essential activities.

It warned that disruptions would continue while the interventions took effect.

“Customers may experience reduced pressure or temporary supply interruptions while these measures are underway,” the utility cautioned.

Residents were told to expect regular updates as work progressed.

“The Entity will continue to provide updates on interventions, restoration progress and alternative water supply arrangements,” Joburg Water confirmed.