Cape Town – The City’s water and sanitation department will be conducting emergency repairs on the 450mm-diameter main water supply to the Atlantis area from Saturday.
The work will start from 9am until 5pm.
“The repair work will result in the Atlantis, Atlantis Industrial and Witsands areas experiencing low water pressure in this period,” the City said.
This follows temporary repairs conducted a week ago after a contractor damaged the pipeline and water supply was restored. It will now be permanently repaired.
“Residents are advised to minimise their water consumption while the repairs are in progress to allow the teams to work as quickly as possible.
“All taps must be kept closed during this period to prevent any water loss and/or damage when the water supply is restored,” the City said.
Residents have been requested to store water in clean, sealed containers for use during this time.
The latest average dam level for the Western Cape is 63.4%. City of Cape Town dams are on average 81.1% full.
Local government MEC Anton Bredell said the situation for the Western Cape was largely positive barring certain regions where challenges remained.
“Ours is not a unique situation. Globally less than 3% of all available water is fresh, and much is inaccessible.
"Recent reports have found that since 1960, the amount of available fresh water per person on the planet has declined by more than half, with over 40% of the world’s population facing water stress.
"By 2030 the expected demand for fresh water will exceed supply by about 40%,” Bredell said.