City is attending to high volumes of electricity service requests

14th June 2023

City is attending to high volumes of electricity service requests

The City’s Electricity teams are working non-stop to attend to the high volumes of electricity service requests because of the severe inclement weather. Electricity infrastructure in some areas has been affected by the heavy rain and wind, our teams are on the ground to attend to these. Read more below:

A number of areas in the metro are experiencing electricity faults due to damaged infrastructure as a result of the inclement weather, flooding and tripping after load-shedding. 

The impacted areas include:

‘In areas where prolonged outages are being experienced it is largely due to the severity of the damage. In more severe cases, we are not able to provide residents with a restoration turnaround time due to the complexity of faults or repairs. We ask residents to please use of the correct service channels to report outages via email and SMS. Residents are reminded to only use one reporting channel and not log multiple requests as duplication can cause delays,’ said Mayoral Committee Member for Energy, Councillor Beverley van Reenen.

Trees affecting electricity infrastructure

The City dedicates resources to trim trees and vegetation on its property to reduce the risk of outages caused by trees encroaching onto power lines and electricity infrastructure. Property owners are also encouraged to safely maintain their trees and vegetation. Stormy weather usually contributes to an increase in power outages, especially where tree branches grow over and into overhead power lines. Residents should contact professionals for assistance where the work is too dangerous or difficult to perform.

Please see here for more information: https://www.capetown.gov.za/Media-and-news/Don't allow tree emergencies to take root this winter

Should residents be concerned that there is a risk of trees on City property encroaching on City overhead power lines, they are encouraged to report these cases to the City’s Fault Reporting Centre on 0860 103 089 or power@capetown.gov.za

For information on new load-shedding trends impacting neighbourhoods, please visit https://www.capetown.gov.za/Media-and-news/Top%20new%20load-shedding%20trends%20impacting%20neighbourhoods

Flooding of roads

Roads that are flooded during heavy downpours, or as a result of continuous rainfall events, will usually clear within less than an hour after the rain has stopped as it takes time for the stormwater infrastructure to divert large volumes of water away from the roads. However, should the problem persist, it is likely that the stormwater infrastructure is blocked. Residents can report blockages to the City.

The most efficient way to log complaints about road infrastructure is by calling the Transport Information Centre (TIC) on 0800 65 64 63.

Complaints can also be logged by email to transport.info@capetown.gov.za

To report life threatening emergencies please dial 021 480 7700 from a cell phone or 107 from a landline.

For electricity service requests (please only log on one channel and do not log the same request multiple times):

Call Centre: 0860 103 089

SMS: 31220 (Please note the free SMS service does not apply)

Email: power@capetown.gov.za

e-Services: www.capetown.gov.za/servicerequests

Log water and sanitation service requests:

Report blocked sewers, pump station failures, vandalism to the sewage reticulation infrastructure and sewage overflows using one of the following channels (Please provide the street address, and get a reference number):

WhatsApp 060 018 1505

Online: www.capetown.gov.za/servicerequests

Email water@capetown.gov.za

SMS 31373 (maximum 160 characters. Standard rates apply)

Call 0860 103 089

Visit a City walk-in centre (see www.capetown.gov.za/facilities to find the one closest to you)

Note: You can submit photographs of the incident via WhatsApp, online and email.

 

Issued by The City of Cape Town