Eskom’s recovery teams are approaching the final stages of restoring electricity supply to towns and communities across the Western Cape, following the severe storm that struck the province in May.

The storm caused widespread damage to medium- and low-voltage infrastructure, resulting in the collapse of multiple electricity networks and leaving thousands of customers without power. Teams have been working around the clock under extremely challenging conditions and have successfully restored the majority of network faults.

Regional restoration progress

Progress across the affected regions has been uneven, with several communities still awaiting full restoration.

In the Overberg region, the communities of Malgas and Hemel-en-Aarde remained without electricity supply. Eskom’s technical teams and leadership had engaged both communities to discuss restoration challenges and the support required to recover the damaged infrastructure. Estimated restoration times will be communicated as soon as possible, the energy supplier said this week.

In the Witzenberg region, where the storm caused the collapse of 12 132-kV pylons, electricity supply has been partially restored. Eskom has accelerated its recovery programme, bringing the estimated restoration date forward from 26 to 24 June.

In the Garden Route, a small number of customers in Buffelsnek, Harkerville and Klein Bavaria remained without supply. Restoration work was continuing in these areas, with an estimated restoration deadline of 25 June, and all efforts were being made to restore supply ahead of this date, Eskom said.

On the West Coast, in the Noordhoek area, recovery efforts were delayed owing to further infrastructure damage, with an estimated restoration date of 19 June.

Obstacles along the way

The recovery process has been both long and demanding. Teams have had to navigate difficult terrain, adverse weather conditions and multiple incidents of cable theft and vandalism, the most recent occurring on the Garden Route, Eskom said.

Gratitude and acknowledgements

Despite these setbacks, Eskom’s teams have demonstrated exceptional commitment and resilience in responding to what has been described as an unprecedented weather event.

The energy supplier has extended its sincere appreciation to customers for their patience, understanding and support throughout the restoration process. The utility has also expressed its gratitude to the Western Cape government, local municipalities, contractors, farmers and communities for their collaboration during the recovery effort.

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