The City of Johannesburg is going to need over R30 million to repair damaged infrastructure on the M1 bridge.
A few days back, a devastating fire estimated to be six times the normal heat ravaged through a tunnel containing City Power infrastructure. It caused damage to the bridge and burned around 500 metres of underground cables. The fire is attributed to cable theft. The city held a media briefing to give an update.
City Power says it’s going to need R23 million to fix the fire damage to its infrastructure.
City Power Group Executive for Service Delivery, Charles Tlouane says it will take them almost two weeks to return things back to normal.
“From City Power point of view, the overall work is going to cost R23 million. We had 11 kv cables, telecommunications cables in that bridge. We had 88 oil filled cables. So, we are replacing those by their own entirety.”
Parts of the Johannesburg inner-city have been plunged into darkness ever since the incident. Tlouane says they are working around the clock to ensure that they temporarily restore them while they work on a full recovery which will take at least two weeks.
Meanwhile, the Johannesburg Roads Agency (JRA) says a structural expert has completed the initial report and has identified several areas that have been damaged on the bridge and its support structure.
JRA Acting Head of Department of Regional Operations, Khayalethu Gqibithole says so far, they are going to need R10 million to fix the damages.
Joburg City Manager Floyd Brink says this is sabotage to the city. He has apologized to Joburg residents for the inconvenience. He says a case has been opened with the police.
City Power estimates that it would have completed all the work by the 20th of May.
Video: M1 Bridge Fire – JHB City officials update on repairs, safety and continued use of the bridge
