Water restored at OR Tambo after temporary shortage disrupts airport

Water supply was restored at OR Tambo International Airport after a temporary shortage affected terminals during repair work.

In a statement, airport management said maintenance teams had completed the repairs and normal supply was returning.

“Repair work has been successfully concluded and water supply has been restored to all terminals. Water pressure is currently building up and will continue to normalise,” they said.

The disruption came just hours after the airport warned travellers about a temporary water outage affecting all terminals while urgent repairs were underway. “Please be advised that all terminals at OR Tambo International are currently experiencing a temporary water shortage due to ongoing repair work. Our maintenance teams are working urgently to resolve the issue and restore normal water supply as soon as possible,” the airport said.

The incident sparked reactions online, with some travellers and public figures raising concerns about conditions at the country’s busiest airport.

Helen Zille shared a post on X warning about the issue along with a photo of a notice at Nando’s indicating the restaurant had no water.

“The whole of OR Tambo airport has no water today. Incredible, in the true sense of the word,” she wrote.

Another traveller, Ngoni Mujuru described the situation at the airport during the outage on X. “Get to OR Tambo, and there’s no water. First time experiencing this. Private lounges are closed, some restaurants too. Nandos even has a no water sign. Everyone just seems to be going about their business and that’s what scares me, situation seems to be normalised. It’s NOT.”

Social media user Tlou Sehlano also criticised the situation. “No water at Africa’s busiest airport? That’s not just inconvenient. It’s a national embarrassment.”

The airport apologised for the inconvenience.

“We sincerely apologise for the inconvenience caused and thank you for your patience, understanding, and co-operation while the repairs were under way,” the airport said.

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