Florida police and other law enforcement officers search for zama zamas at Robertville in northwestern Johannesburg during a crackdown in 2022. Picture: Nigel Sibanda Benoni residents are running out of patience after ongoing outages have left them without electricity for days. Some areas were left in the dark for nearly a week, while others were still waiting for restoration by Sunday morning.
Reports indicate that it first blacked out on Saturday 24 January in the early hours of the morning. A resident toldThe Citizenthat living without power for this long has not only negatively affected her business, which she runs from home, but also every other aspect of her life. “My family is dependent on electricity; this is the pits, it’s fucking frustrating, and we just do not get answers,” they said.
Meanwhile, the City has attributed the latest major outage to damage on a 132 kV underground cable along Benoni’s Snake Road, linking the failure to illegal mining in the area. According to the municipality, repeated blasting associated with illegal mining causes ground vibrations that weaken cable joints and insulation, increasing the risk of failure. Yet, the city’s response differs somewhat from an open letter to EKurhuleni mayor Nkosindiphile Xhakaza.
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Ward councillor Loretta Joseph said she was writing on behalf of Benoni residents after a week of prolonged and repeated electricity outages that, in her view, exposed serious failures in service delivery, communication, risk management and oversight. Joseph set out a timeline for the main outage affecting large parts of Benoni, noting that some areas had also experienced separate outages since 21 January. An attempted cable theft in the early hours of 24 January triggered a major blackout across several wards.
Residents were initially given a restoration time of 27 January, but supply only returned briefly and failed again. When power was restored on 30 January, it repeatedly tripped and did not remain stable. Electricity failed again that night before gradually returning the following day.
Joseph described the consequences as severe and unacceptable. Residents endured nearly a week or more without stable electricity, leading to food spoilage, business losses and major household disruption. Many households could not cook, charge devices or properly secure their homes.
Those dependent on medical equipment were placed at risk, while families struggled with basic needs such as bathing and washing school uniforms. She also noted that the local SAPS offices were left without power, affecting policing and public safety. Throughout the period, she said, city communication was fragmented, overly technical and inconsistent.
Meanwhile Ekurhuleni spokesperson Zweli Dlamini said illegal mining had also been linked to sinkholes in parts of the metro, including Brakpan, Snake Road and Primrose. The Boksburg Rondebult sinkholes, still not repaired after four years, were among the first instances of the severity of infrastructure damage caused by illegal mining.
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