GQEBERHA – Businesses, residents and students in parts of Nelson Mandela Bay continue to feel the impact of a prolonged power outage expected to last up to 21 days, as work intensifies to restore power to affected areas.
The PE Express previously reported that a transmission pylon on the Chelsea–Arlington–Walmer–Summerstrand line collapsed on Wednesday, 18 March, causing power outages across parts of the metro.
This is not the first pylon collapse along the line this month. An earlier failure on 11 March caused widespread outages across multiple suburbs, leaving residents and businesses temporarily without electricity.
Progress on the damaged 132kV Chelsea–Arlington–Walmer–Summerstrand transmission line is advancing steadily.
During an oversight visit on Tuesday, 24 March, Member of the Mayoral Committee for Electricity and Energy Ziyanda Mnqokoyi, assessed ongoing restoration efforts on site.
“Work on site continues to progress steadily, with three teams actively working to accelerate the restoration process,” the municipality said. “To date, only four monopole structures remain to be erected, while two foundation rings still need to be placed into the excavated holes.”
Municipal teams have since made further headway. All monopole structures have now been successfully assembled and are ready for installation.
Of the 24 concrete foundation rings required, 20 have already been placed, with the remaining four scheduled for completion.
“A crane truck is expected on site today to commence the installation of the monopoles,” the municipality added. “In addition, conductor materials will be arriving on site to allow for stringing work to begin as soon as the monopoles are in place.”
Three teams remain on site working to accelerate repairs, with officials emphasising that “all work is being carried out in line with strict safety and quality standards to ensure long-term network stability.”
The outage has had a significant impact on daily life, disrupting business operations and leaving many residents and students without reliable power.
In response, the DASO-led SRC at Nelson Mandela University engaged with university management to implement academic support measures for students affected by the outages.
Library operating hours were extended over the past weekend, with South, North and Second Avenue campuses open from 09:00 to 16:00 and further extended during the week, with libraries operating until midnight until Thursday.
“This period coincides with a critical phase in the academic calendar, as students are currently engaged in assessments,” SRC Academics Officer Letsoalo Mogale said. “The impact of these power outages has significantly disrupted students’ ability to study effectively.”
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