Umgeni Water warns residents of interruptions in water supply

Bulk water supplier Umgeni Water is cautioning residents against stock-piling water.

It says hoarding water will put added pressure on its already strained system.

Essential maintenance work by Eskom on infrastructure that supplies power to the Midmar water treatment work plant in Howick is expected to hamper water supply.

Ongoing power supply issues at the Hazelmere Water Treatment Plant has also impacted the supply of water to communities in and around Durban.

Umgeni Water spokesperson Shami Harichunder says the La Mercy Reservoir north of Durban is the worst affected due to this power failure.

“We suffered quite a substantial power failure in the Hazelmere water treatment plant. That occurred on Sunday going into Monday. The problem was fixed by the eThekwini electricity department. But however, a few hours later – a similar problem occurred and we are back to where we were two days ago.”

“If people use water conservatively, we won’t have a situation where the reservoir empties out. But if people rush to fill up water and store, given the period in which the water is being conducted, then we are going to have a problem on our hands,” adds Harichunder.

The audio below is the full interview with Shami Harichunder: