Water supply disrupted in Strand and parts of Somerset West

The City’s Water and Sanitation Directorate are currently doing planned water supply maintenance work in identified areas across the Cape Metropole, and this maintenance work will result in water supply disruption later this week in the whole of Strand and parts of Somerset West.

Maintenance work, will include pipe and valve installations, repairs and replacements and the City advises residents to store enough water in advance, as a precautionary measure. Water should be stored in clean, sealed containers.

According to the City, this critical maintenance work is done on the City’s water-supply infrastructure to benefit customers and residents in the affected are encouraged to take note of this disruption in their water supply and plan accordingly.

Somerset West residents to be affected include those living in Martinville, Benetownship, Roundby, Kalamunda and a portion of Bizweni. The water supply to these areas are shut off from 9am until 5pm on Tuesday February 4.

During this time residents are advised to keep all taps closed to prevent any water loss or damage when the water supply is restored.

The water supply to the Strand area will be shut off from 8am to 5pm, on Thursday February 6. “This will allow the maintenance team to install the valves to connect the temporary pipelines to water mains in Munnik Street and Joubert Street in Strand. This is the third and final phase of the pipe replacement project in this area,” says the City.

The whole of Strand will be affected and according to the City, the impacted area could unfortunately not be reduced due to passing valves in the water supply network.

“This work forms part of the Water and Sanitation Directorate’s proactive infrastructure maintenance and upgrade programme, which ensures the future continuity of water supply by addressing the issue of unaccounted for water,” said the City in a statement.

Residents should note that sites where maintenance are being done, are off-limit to the public and the work could take more longer than expected or initially announced.

Once the water supply has been restored, says the City the water out of taps can be discoloured or appear to be milky, as a result of trapped air in the pipes. “If left to stand in a glass, the appearance will become clear, like normal,” the City states.

Those affected can folllow the City’s social media pages for updates on the maintenance work (and location of tankers where applicable), follow @CityofCTAlerts which is a City of Cape Town X account.