Johannesburg - As the water crisis hit Joburg this week, tankers sent to suburbs where taps have run dry have been stolen.
Over the past three days, three tankers have been stolen from areas where they were parked in South Hills, Westdene and Crown Gardens.
Joburg Water is appealing to residents not to steal these vehicles which are bringing relief to drought-stricken residents.
Spokesman Hilgard Matthews said the tankers were 2 500-litre and 5 000-litre tankers.
“We believe they are being stolen at night when people are sleeping. This is a very selfish act, as the tankers are there to assist residents,” he said.
The bad news for water-strapped Gauteng is that there is only a 30 percent chance of rain in the next few days with chances increasing to 70 percent only from Monday.
But, warns the SA Weather Service, residents should not be fooled even if it does rain as this will bring only temporary relief.
Weather forecaster Cobus Cronje said there was still a long season ahead, and a few days of rain would not alleviate the drought.
“Residents should continue using water sparingly as a few thundershowers will not make much difference,” he said.
Despite some cloud cover, temperatures are expected to remain in the 30º and higher range, he said.
In the meantime, water was restricted to the Illovo water tower on Wednesday night between midnight and 4am on Thursday to fill up Rand Water’s Klipriviersberg bulk reservoir which supplies about 70 percent of Gauteng. However, supply to Sandton was partially restored by 6am and was expected to be back to normal by midday.
In Zacharia Park, Lenasia, certain high-lying areas have water shortages.
South Hills faces a third day without normal water supply. Rand Water’s Meyershill reservoir is at 1.5 percent full. Once it reaches about 10 percent, Joburg Water will be able to pump to the South Hills.
On Thursday morning the Brixton, Crown Garden and South Hills towers were filling up after they ran dry and residents reported a steady flow of water.
Areas affected by shortages in the Hursthill reservoir are: Coronationville, Westdene, Westbury and Greenside.
On Thursday morning, City of Joburg mayor Parks Tau is expected to visit Joburg Water’s control room and to hold a media briefing about the water situation.
The Gauteng Water and Sanitation Forum is to meet on Monday to discuss pooling water resources in the province.
Residents can obtain more information on Twitter @jhbwater; Facebook at Johannesburg Water and the website, www.johannesburgwater.co.za.
@annacox
The Star
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