In addition to load shedding, City Power has reported that cable theft and substation failures have caused power disruptions in the West Rand area.

JOHANNESBURG – Residents of Roodepoort claimed that the frequent power outages were placing them under tremendous financial strain. In addition to load shedding, the West Rand region has had prolonged outages for months. According to City Power, this is because to cable theft and substation problems. On a Thursday inspection by officials, the power company found illicit mining close to a significant substation.

In the past week, some residents in Honeydew and Radiokop complained that they did not have electricity for many days.Some affected residents who spoke to Eyewitness News said daily tasks such as cooking or bathing are a challenge and that they wasted money on food that went off.It’s been “an absolute nightmare” according to one resident.

“I’m a single mother with two kids. For the past two weeks we have basically had power for an hour or five minutes,” said another resident.“We can’t work from home, it is an absolute nightmare,” said another, while one more resident said: “A power outage is now being pushed to an extent that is beyond us as humans to even accept.”

City Power said in the meantime it would be conducting an assessment to see if the substations in the area are still fit to operate.