Water off in much of Cape Town from 28 July to 1 August

The City’s Water and Sanitation Directorate will be doing planned work in the identified areas, which will result in a water supply disruption. This critical maintenance work is done on our water supply infrastructure to benefit customers. Residents in the affected areas are encouraged to take note of the work that will take place and prepare accordingly.

Maintenance work, including pipe and valve installations, repairs and replacements.

Residents are advised to store enough water in advance as a precautionary measure. Water should be stored in clean, sealed containers. This precaution does not guarantee all residents will have a water disruption, but it aims to ensure they are able to prepare just in case it does occur.

Planned maintenance work will result in a water supply disruption to these areas:

Hanover Park, Athlone, Rylands, Newfields, Pinati Estate, Belthorn Estate, Penlyn Estate and Belgravia

The Water and Sanitation Directorate’s appointed contractor is conducting low-pressure investigations to improve the pressure in these areas.

The project commenced on 9 June 2025 and is expected to run for approximately five months. Investigations are currently continuing in the Athlone area with a focus on the pipeline in the Mountview, Penlyn and Belthorn Estate suburbs.

Intermittent water pressure disruptions may be experienced temporarily from 09:00 to 17:00 during the week of 28 July 2025 to 1 August 2025.

The work will involve tracing, verification and positioning of the valves in the pipeline in these suburbs.

Part of Strand

The water supply to Rusthof in Strand will be shut off temporarily from 09:00 until 20:00 on Tuesday, 29 July 2025.

This will enable the maintenance team to safely connect a pressure reducing valve (PRV) to the existing 300mm diameter pipeline in Rusthof. These residents will experience no water during this period.

Part of the CBD – Cape Town

Maintenance teams will be doing a temporary test shut-off of the water main in the Cape Town CBD from 09:00 to 16:00 on Tuesday, 29 July 2025.

The affected streets are Bree Street (from Strand Street to Shortmarket Street), Shortmarket Street (from Bree Street to Loop Street) and Hout Street (from Bree Street to Loop Street).

This test is in preparation for the actual water shut-off scheduled from 09:00 to 18:00 on Thursday, 31 July 2025, to allow for a new connection to be made in Bree Street.

Consumers along the affected streets will experience no water supply during these times.

Welgelegen

Maintenance teams will be doing a temporary test shut-off of the water main in the Welgelegen area and possibly surrounding streets from 09:00 until 16:00 on Tuesday, 29 July 2025.

This is in preparation for the actual shut-off from 09:00 until 18:00 on Thursday, 31 July 2025, to replace three defective valves.

Residents in this area will experience no water during these periods.

Zero-pressure tests (ZPT) and conditional assessments will be done on the water supply network, resulting in water supply disruptions in the following areas:

Wednesday, 30 July 2025, from 09:00 until 17:00: The Conifers and Malibu Village (Blue Downs).
Wednesday, 30 July 2025, from 20:00 overnight until 14:00 on Thursday, 31 July, 2024: Site C – Khayelitsha.
Thursday, 31 July 2025, from 09:00 until 17:00: Kuils River Industrial (CBD) bounded by Fabriek Street, The Railway Line, the R300 and Van Riebeeck Avenue.

Zero-pressure testing and step-testing are part of the installation process for zone management infrastructure. Tests are done in advance to see if any unmapped inflows need to be considered before installing new infrastructure (such as pressure-reducing valves for pressure management).

In these affected areas, some residents may experience low water pressure, while some may have no water during the testing period. Unfortunately, it is not possible to predict which exact areas or streets will experience disruptions.

Additional zone management investigations will be carried out to ensure that existing infrastructure is operating effectively. Pressure fluctuations may be experienced, but every effort will be made to minimise the impact as far as possible.

This work forms part of the City’s Water Demand Management Strategy. Managing water pressure more effectively reduces the possibility of pipe bursts and water wastage.

What residents need to know about larger-scale planned water supply disruptions:

Careful consideration has been given to the planning of this work to ensure it is being done at a time that is least disruptive to the water supply.

All sites where water and sanitation repairs and upgrades are conducted are deemed to be construction sites and, as such, are off-limits to members of the public.

Sometimes the maintenance work can be more complex than anticipated, which means the work could take longer.

For a short period after the supply has been restored, the water may be discoloured or look milky. This is because of trapped air in the pipes. If left to stand in a glass, the appearance will become clear, like normal.

For updates on the maintenance work (and location of tankers where applicable), follow @CityofCTAlerts, which is a City of Cape Town X account.

How residents are advised to prepare for planned water supply disruptions:

Store enough water in clean, sealed containers in advance for use during this period.
Keep your taps closed to prevent any water loss and/or damage when the water supply is restored.