Electricity has been restored to most areas across Nelson Mandela Bay following a successful repair operation that addressed damage caused by vandalism at the Mount Road substation over the weekend, 24 August.
The Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality announced on Monday evening that its technical team had successfully completed the oil filtration process on the high-voltage 132kV cable and restored oil pressure to required levels, paving the way for the gradual restoration of power supply.
The Initial Crisis
The power crisis began at approximately 03:45 on Sunday morning when thieves targeted the cable oil pump station at Mount Road substation, causing both 66kV transformers to trip and affecting primary and backup electricity supply systems.
The incident left eight major areas without power, including North End, parts of South End, Kensington, Central, Mount Road, parts of Newton Park, and parts of Walmer, affecting thousands of residents and businesses.
Restoration Process
Executive Mayor Babalwa Lobishe, speaking yesterday afternoon, 25 August, acknowledged the significant impact of the outage and outlined the municipality’s response efforts.
“We are hard at work as the municipality to make sure that restoration happens and we want to apologise to our residents for all the inconvenience they have been experiencing,” Lobishe said.
The mayor explained that the outage affected areas including South End, Kensington, Yowoma, Mount Road Central, and The Harbour, emphasizing that the incident was caused by criminal activity.
“We would sincerely like to apologise because this is due to vandalism, which has not been known earlier, and we will do all means possible to secure these stations,” she stated.
Ward 7 councillor Brendon Pegram praised the dedication of technical teams working around the clock to resolve the crisis, noting on Monday that electricity supply had been successfully restored to certain areas.
“Despite the challenges, I want to assure you that the teams have been working tirelessly throughout the night to resolve the issue,” Pegram said, while acknowledging that temporary solutions involving back-channeling through other substations had mixed results.
Technical Repairs
The municipality confirmed that repairs to the stolen pipes on one of the main 132kV cables were successfully completed by Sunday evening. The technical team then began the delicate process of pumping oil through the 4km line at a carefully controlled rate.
“The team has been carefully pumping oil through the full length of the affected cable to build up the correct pressure needed before electricity can safely be restored. This is a delicate process that requires constant monitoring to avoid further damage,” the municipality stated.
Current Status and Cautious Restoration
In their latest update, the municipality announced they would begin the careful process of restoring electricity supply following the successful completion of the oil filtration process.
“This is a gradual task, as a large portion of the Metro was affected by the outage, and we must proceed cautiously to protect the system,” the municipality stated.
Residents and businesses have been asked to remain patient and switch off electrical appliances where possible to help prevent damage as supply is restored.
Mayor Lobishe expressed optimism about the restoration timeline, stating, “We wish residents could endure for a few hours, because by the end of Business Day today, we are hopeful that restoration would have happened.”
Future Prevention Measures
Looking ahead, the municipality has indicated plans to implement measures to prevent similar widespread outages in the future.
“We are working on a plan to separate the areas so that when there is this type of an outage, not all the areas are affected,” Mayor Lobishe explained.
The municipality maintained that circuit breakers feeding hospitals, municipal buildings, and the airport were prioritized and brought back into service during the outage.
Ongoing Challenges
While power has been restored to most areas, some parts of the metro remain without electricity as technical teams continue their work. The municipality has promised further updates as more information becomes available.
The incident highlights ongoing challenges with infrastructure security and the impact of vandalism on essential services in the metro.
The municipality has expressed deep appreciation for residents’ patience, understanding, and cooperation during what they described as “this challenging time.”
The municipality was approached for comment, but no comment was received at the time of publishing.
