Gauteng’s worsening water crisis has left residents frustrated and councillors under pressure and prompted President Cyril Ramaphosa to directly intervene.
In parts of Johannesburg, some communities have reportedly been without water for more than three weeks, leading to protests as residents demanded urgent solutions.
“This water crisis has become a norm. We cross our fingers every weekend hoping water doesn’t go off.” — Councillor Kenneth Masha
While the national government steps in, ward councillors say they are bearing the brunt of residents’ anger.
Kenneth Masha, a councillor from Olivenhoutbosch, said repeated water cuts and a shortage of tankers have left communities stranded and councillors overwhelmed.
“I have 10 extensions in my ward, and in most cases, I was running with only six water tankers,” Masha said.
He said that all six tankers were collecting water from a single hydrant, causing long queues and severe delays.
Masha says poor communication from Rand Water made matters worse, leaving residents confused and frustrated.
“Residents blame councillors, saying we are the ones causing this. They don’t understand that this is a Rand Water problem.”
According to Masha, some areas have gone without water for five to six days at a time, only for supply to be briefly restored before being cut again.
“This water crisis has become a norm. We cross our fingers every weekend hoping water doesn’t go off. When it does, everything comes to a standstill. We cannot even hold funerals or unveilings.”
The crisis escalated to the point where Ramaphosa instructed water and sanitation minister Pemmy Majodina and minister of cooperative governance and traditional affairs Velenkosini Hlabisa to urgently attend to Johannesburg’s water challenges instead of attending the 2026 state of the nation address (Sona).
Presidential spokesperson Vincent Magwenya confirmed the decision on Thursday.
“The president has assigned the ministers... to urgently attend to the water crisis in Johannesburg. They won’t be attending Sona as a result,” said Magwenya.
Ward councillor Anna Alida Erasmus from Elardus Park in Pretoria said residents woke up without water after the United Park Reservoir ran critically low.
“It appears the reservoir was next to empty. They only started pumping water about an hour ago. There were no warnings, no heads-up, no feedback from bulk services — nothing,” she said.
Erasmus confirmed that despite requesting assistance, no water tankers were dispatched.
Ridgeway and Ormonde residents took to the streets yesterday morning to protest after being without water for five days.
They expressed frustration at the crisis, saying it had severely disrupted their daily lives.
Resident Zandile Dlamini described long queues at water collection points.
“We had to leave at 9.30 last night [Wednesday] after queueing for almost three hours. It gets overcrowded, with people bringing multiple 5-litre and 20-litre containers just to get water to cook, flush toilets and bath. Meanwhile, our leaders go to hotels when they don’t have water,” Dlamini said.
Meanwhile, Tshwane intends to take a report to the council to recommend a move to level 2 water restrictions, which will result in heavy fines for offenders who consume too much water.
The city said it is experiencing extensive water pressure and supply challenges across multiple systems due to significantly low inflows from Rand Water.
Tshwane spokesperson Selby Bokaba said the reduced inflow from the water utility was negatively impacting the recovery of city reservoirs, with several high-lying and sensitive areas struggling to maintain adequate supply.
He said systems still facing major challenges include the Mabopane Main and Kruisfontein reservoirs, which remain at critically low levels. The Mabopane, Soshanguve L and Soshanguve DD reservoirs are still empty, he said.
“Consequently, there is no active supply in these systems at this stage, and the city’s technical teams are facing difficulties in restoring flows due to the network’s depletion.”
Gauteng education department spokesperson Steve Mabona said schools have also been affected by the water crisis.
“Some schools were allowed to release learners earlier, with the exception of grade 12 learners. We are monitoring the situation as we support schools accordingly,” he said.
Sowetan
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