Midrand Residents Demand Answers Over Prolonged Water Shortage
Frustrated residents of Midrand, a northern administrative area of Johannesburg, took to the streets on Tuesday, February 3, 2026, to protest a severe water outage that had left their taps dry for six days. The demonstration, held at the corner of Vodacom Boulevard and Lever Road, highlighted growing anger over persistent water supply issues affecting large parts of South Africa's economic hub.
The prolonged disruption has impacted numerous suburbs, including Sandton, Alexandra, and Diepsloot, with some areas experiencing outages for over a week.
Causes and Extent of the Crisis
The water crisis stems from a series of interconnected failures within the bulk water supply system. According to officials, a system failure at Rand Water on January 26, 2026, initially disrupted supply to Johannesburg and Ekurhuleni. This was compounded by an explosion of a motor connected to a pump at the Zuikerbosch Water Treatment Plant on January 27, 2026, followed by a leak discovered at the Klipfontein Reservoir inlet. The Klipfontein Reservoir, which supplies a significant portion of Midrand, holds approximately 250 megalitres of water.
Johannesburg Water confirmed that the Midrand system was constrained due to reduced incoming supply, with reservoir levels, including Erand, President Park, Grand Central, and Rabie Ridge, reported as critically low or empty.
Community Outcry and Official Responses
Residents expressed profound frustration over the lack of clear communication from water authorities, namely Rand Water and Johannesburg Water. Abby Artico, a Midrand resident and protester, voiced the personal toll of the outage, stating, 'It's terrible. I've got elderly parents. They're both in their late eighties. How do I clean them? How do I wash them?' Concerns were also raised about the inadequacy and unreliability of water tankers provided to affected communities.
In response to the protests, Joburg Mayor Dada Morero and Deputy Minister of Water and Sanitation David Mahlobo acknowledged the 'pain and suffering' caused to residents. Mahlobo stated that the problem had been resolved and, as of Tuesday morning, four of the five reservoirs supplying Midrand were operating above 60% capacity, with water restoration gradually commencing. He also highlighted government plans to increase reservoir storage capacity and improve coordination between Johannesburg Water, Rand Water, and the department.
Underlying Issues and Future Outlook
The current crisis has brought to light long-standing issues within Midrand's water infrastructure. Rand Water noted that the area faces a persistent problem of high water consumption, exacerbated by the growth of both formal and informal settlements. Civil society organizations, such as WaterCAN, have warned that the outages reflect a 'fragile, poorly maintained system' and called for greater accountability and direct communication from water utilities to the public. While repairs have been completed at the bulk supply level, the slow recovery in areas like Midrand indicates the systemic challenges in ensuring consistent water delivery.
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