Central Karoo power outage: Residents could have power by Thursday, says Eskom
A thunderstorm hit the region earlier this month, severely damaging infrastructure. Repair efforts have been hampered by load shedding and hard rock formations.
One of the power pylons in the central Karoo that was damaged during a storm. Picture: Supplied
CAPE TOWN - The Western Cape government says it is boosting its efforts to support Eskom as teams work around the clock to fix the electricity outage in the Central Karoo.
A thunderstorm hit the region earlier this month, severely damaging infrastructure.
Sutherland, Matjiesfontein, Laingsburg, Ladismith, Leeu Gamka, and Prince Albert were among several affected towns.
Eskom is aiming to fully restore power to the affected communities by Thursday, and with the deadline looming, provincial government has bolstered its support.
Premier Alan Winde said staff members were assisting in several ways, from procuring drilling equipment to transporting and moving generators and equipment to the affected areas.
Several challenges including hard rock formations and faulty equipment are hampering the teams' efforts, along with Stage 6 load shedding, which has seen generator availability in the province being stretched.
The Western Cape Social Development Department is providing food relief, and has also enabled three old age facilities in Prince Albert, Laingsburg, and Ladismith to buy diesel for generators, as their supplies have been dwindling.