Rand Water supply problems affect Gauteng Residents

Albereth said:
Rand Water lies.

The reason for the lack of supply is due to sheer incompetence and stupidity. The simplest metric in any utility is how much is going out the pipe/cable. That these idiots couldn't even pick up that they were supplying less especially when it was so hot speaks volumes about just how retarded they are.

Sure, power cables may have been stolen but you can't say we thought the backup was working. Clearly if there is no water going out Rand Water something is wrong.

Is the Rand Water motto: If they don't have water let them drink Valpre?

And the solution to all this is so simple apart from disposing of the bodies.
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I know I am going to get flack over this, but I need to get it off my chest...

The sole cause of this whole water crisis issue is: Affirmative Action. Useless people in important positions.

There you go. Take it or leave it.
 
Not AA. Cadre deployment and a culture of no accountability.
 
Sinbad said:
Not AA. Cadre deployment and a culture of no accountability.
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I am saddened and disgusted! I left RW in 2006. Maintenance was an extremely high priority at the time because of the then recent Jhb flooding incident. This would not have been limited to only the pipelines and valves in those lines, but also reservoirs, pumping stations, depots and any other secondary and tertiary support systems under control of RW.
 
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Garyvdh said:
Was that the Meredale pipeline burst?
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Oh wait, that is not why I left. I left because I wanted to further my career elsewhere.

But to answer you, yes. That is the incident I am referring to. It sparked a renewed consciousness for maintenance. We always knew it would be a medium to long term commitment because of the vastness of the network.
 
Much to everyone's surprise infrastructure is in trouble after 20 years of dodgy maintenance & planning.

That being said I've got more faith in RW than the parts of infrastructure that gov is directly responsible for.
 
Incidentally apparently one of the pump stations does have a backup generator. Or did. It was stolen.
 
OGroteKoning said:
I don't know if you knew this, but RW needs electricity to pump water. And since they don't do power stations, they are kinda dependant on Eskom. When RW noticed power problems in view of the above, what do you think they should do if there is no power?
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I am fully aware that they need electricity to drive the pumps. But we do have things called generators.
 
A bit more on this in Engineering News. They are going to deal with the problem in the familiar fashion of taking away from those who do have. And they will establish a committee.

State-owned water utility Rand Water has resolved to use load shifting to correct current imbalances in water supply in Gauteng, the Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) said on Friday.

According to Rand Water, the water shortages, which first started in the west of Johannesburg on September 15, were caused by power outages, which coincided with the expected increase in water demand as the season changed from winter to spring, with ageing infrastructure and vandalism also having contributed to the problem.

According to reports on Friday morning, two suburbs in Johannesburg – South Hills and Rabie Ridge – and two in Ekurhuleni – Bedfordview and Primrose – were still without water.

The DWS explained that the load shifting that would now be employed was a measure whereby water supply was shifted from an area of normal supply to one where there had been no water by redirecting the flow to the latter, thus ensuring that communities which had been without water would receive supply at fixed intervals until water supply returned to normal.

While the water distribution from the system is redirected, communities where water is blocked will be provided for through water tankers, the DWS said.

Addressing the media after a meeting with Rand Water top management, Water and Sanitation Minister Nomvula Mokonyane said about a quarter of the water normally distributed by Rand Water would be used in the redistribution process.

“There will also be additional pumping that will take place to restore normal operations and supply to the affected areas of Tshwane, Ekurhuleni, Johannesburg and some of the high-lying areas of Mogale City,” the Minister noted, adding that “everything will be normalised” within a period of two weeks.

Meanwhile, she also emphasised the importance of communication throughout this period and, as a result, a helpline had been established. The helpline could be reached by dialling 0860 101 060.

“We will have a communication centre so that we do not have a distortion and high levels of anxiety in our communities,” the Minister stated.

Furthermore, to ensure homogeneous spread of information, the department would partner with the public broadcaster, the South African Broadcasting Corporation, as well as community radio stations.

Mokonyane said communities would be updated at least four times a day on the water situation.

She further pointed out that the DWS was also starting to work on longer-term solutions, stating that there had to be a Gauteng water master plan that considered infrastructure, water consumption and water management in a holistic way.

“There [are the] issues of aged infrastructure and water conservation and, most importantly, we need to go back and look at alternative energy supply for water so that we do not just rely on one source of energy. We need to look at other means and we have tasked Rand Water to work with our other sister entities to look at this solution,” the Minister said.

Mokonyane was also scheduled to meet with Gauteng Premier David Makhura’s Coordinating Forum on Friday afternoon to discuss the current water supply interruptions, while the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Water and Sanitation also on Friday held an urgent meeting with Rand Water to seek solutions to the continuing shortages.
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garyc said:
A bit more on this in Engineering News. They are going to deal with the problem in the familiar fashion of taking away from those who do have. And they will establish a committee.
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load shedding but with water? this is a new level of craziness.... feels like we live in Mogadishu:p
 
Typical anc to wait for a disaster before starting the planning phase....

Too busy filling their "fire pools"
 
WATER LEVELS REMAIN LOW: RAND WATER

Water levels remain low in certain parts of Johannesburg, Rand Water said on Monday.

These included Waterval, where water levels were at 20 percent, and Meredale, where water levels stood at 15 percent, spokesman Justice Mohale said.

Water and Sanitation Minister Nomvula Mokonyane would provide more information on the water shortages during a briefing in Johannesburg on Monday afternoon.

"Decisions will be taken after the minister speaks to the media," Mohale said.

Gauteng has been hit by water shortages -- apparently due to the theft of electrical cables needed for reservoirs to pump water.

The shortage has affected parts of Ekurhuleni, the West Rand, Johannesburg and Tshwane.

Water levels were at 40 percent on Saturday but dropped on Sunday morning.

"There was a serious drop. Contributing factors could be that people stored water in buckets thinking water would not come back again," Mohale said on Sunday.

"We give ourselves two weeks to get sufficient water supply -- that's our target and that can only happen if there are no interruptions like cable theft or power failures to pump water. We have to normalise water."

Mohale said that throughout the week water levels in reservoirs had been fluctuating, which was normal.

Water restoration in the province would be gradual and people were urged to use water sparingly.

"When water is restored it is gradual; we will not restore water in all areas at the same time," Mohale said on Sunday.

"We know we do have people who do not have water. Let's try conserve a bit because we do have people who don't use water discreetly... Please just wait a bit until we normalise the situation."

Earlier on Sunday, Ekurhuleni municipality said the water supply was stabilising after Bedfordview and Primrose started receiving water after a period of shortages.

Spokesman Themba Gadebe said the two areas were the last of 10 to stabilise after the municipality and Rand Water restored water to affected areas.


Source : Sapa /kd/tk/jk/jje
Date : 29 Sep 2014 09:08
 
Has all the pumping stations been supplied electricity? If so then you guys up on the reef has some real problems as Rand water does not have the capacity to to fill reservoirs and supply daily consumption. Even worse than Eskom...
 
Magnum said:
Has all the pumping stations been supplied electricity? If so then you guys up on the reef has some real problems as Rand water does not have the capacity to to fill reservoirs and supply daily consumption. Even worse than Eskom...
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Rand Water not being able to supply water is a very different problem to having empty resevoirs. Joburg Water is mean to make sure the resevoirs are serving the areas (in Joburg). Yes, City Power provides energy for the pumps.

Both Joburg Water and City Power have telemetry systems that are meant to monitor their reticulation systems. City Power most certainly doesn't have complete coverage so they may miss out when power to a water pump trips. Joburg Water, as far as I know, ought to have telemetry for every resevoir including inflow, resevoir levels, and outflow.

Eskom provides energy to City Power at some 40-odd input points. They meter what they deliver. City Power also meters what comes in. Every month Eskom sends a bill to City Power and they reconcile energy supplied with energy received. What gets lost or reclaimed from citizens is then City Power's problem.

Rand Water provides bulk water to Joburg Water at a number of intake points. Same metering concept happens. The difference between electricty and water is that water can be stored in resevoirs and in the pipes.

But is doesn't really matter if the energy or water is lost after it's received to know that there is a problem. If Rand Water aren't delivering. or Joburg Water aren't receiving there is a problem. There is no excuse that 'I thought the backups were working' becuase nothing has flowed.

Same is true at every resevoir. If nothing flows then it is broken. There is no excuse about thinking backups were working.

Cable theft is no excuse - City Power have a number of generators. Heck, they dropped one in Houghton last year to keep the fridges on. And they can always hire more.

There is no excuse. None whatsoever for this mess.

If someone had stolen a water tower I may be able to understand a shortage. But they haven't.
 
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