Pretoria – The City of Tshwane has warned that increased load-shedding creates opportunities for cable thefts and other crimes.
Eskom on Tuesday escalated load-shedding to Stage 4, which the power utility said would last until Thursday.
Responding to the move, the City warned that load-shedding, increased vandalism, and theft have a damaging impact on our electricity infrastructure.
The City has been in the crosshairs of Eskom over outstanding debts of over one billion rand.
The power utility has threatened to cut electricity supplies to the capital city unless the whole amount owing is settled.
Reacting to the ramped-up load-shedding, the City complained that it comes after Eskom had already implemented various stages of load-shedding for several days.
“As we previously communicated, increased levels of load-shedding means that rolling blackouts will affect all regions of Tshwane two to three times a day,” said Daryl Johnston MMC for Utilities and Regional Operations.
“Load-shedding in general has a negative impact on our infrastructure and electricity network, which were never designed to be continuously turned on and off as a result of Eskom implementing prolonged load-shedding.
“The City has also noticed a concerning trend where our electricity network is being deliberately targeted during load-shedding by criminals who are looking to either steal or vandalise our infrastructure.
“We have had a spike of vandalism targeting our substations across Tshwane on almost a daily basis.”
Johnston said residents should be aware that cable theft and damages to substations were hindering the City’s ability to provide stable power.
“We are exploring new security technology to protect our infrastructure and we are also working with the Tshwane Metro Police Department (TMPD) to prevent and respond faster to incidents of infrastructure vandalism,” said Johnston.
“‘However, the reality is that we need your help as residents: We need more eyes on the ground and this means reporting to authorities when you spot suspicious activity around our infrastructure.”
He appealed to neighbourhood watch groups, security companies and community policing forums to assist in catching “these criminals where possible”.
Johnston said: “We cannot allow damage to our infrastructure to continue unabated. Working together, we must push back and fight these criminals lawfully”.
To report suspicious activity, please contact TMPD 24-hour line on 012 358 7095/7096 or Cable Theft Hotline on 012 358 7095 or 080 011 2722.
