The City of Cape Town started implementing “stage three” power cuts on Thursday, the city said.
“Stage three is the highest level of load shedding possible,” said spokesman Neil Ballantyne.
The schedule of affected areas was available on the city’s website. “The city will keep residents and business informed of any updates.”
Ballantyne said the city was doing everything it could to help Eskom for the sake of its residents. “It is important to note that the city is wholly reliant on Eskom for the electricity supply.”
He advised residents to monitor their electricity usage.
Meanwhile, a number of suburbs in Port Elizabeth will be without electricity until midday on Thursday, the Nelson Mandela Bay municipality said.
“The municipality is currently implementing a load shedding schedule as directed by Eskom,” it said in a statement.
The areas affected included New Brighton, Seaview, Walker Drive, Brickmakerskloof, Vuyisile Mini Square, Newton Park, and Linton Grange.
The full load shedding schedule was available on the municipality’s website, it said.
Power will be restored in various suburbs of Johannesburg by 12.30pm on Thursday, City power said.
In Johannesburg, electricity had been cut off since 8.30am as part of load shedding due to an emergency request from Eskom, said City Power spokesman Hloni Motloung.
The affected areas were Hillbrow, Berea, Houghton, Hillside, Parktown, Doornfontein, Yeoville, Rosebank, Killarney, Saxonwold, Hyde Park, Dunkeld, Parkwood, Melrose Arch, Melrose, Birdhaven, Chislehurston, Riviera, Norwood, Bramley, Illovo, Athol, Inanda, Alexandra, Wynberg, Kew, Bramley Gardens, Fairmount, Silvamonte, Lyndhurst, Glenhazel, Crystal Gardens, Rembrandt Park, Sunningdale, and Lombardy.
Motloung said a full schedule of power cuts was available on City Power’s website.
Customers were urged to switch off appliances and equipment during outages to avoid damage when the power was restored.
“City Power apologises for the inconvenience and will keep the customers updated on the situation through its website.”
Eskom earlier announced power cuts were scheduled to last from 9am to 10pm across the country due to seven days of heavy rain leaving coal stocks wet.
Consumers were urged to switch off all non-essential appliances to reduce the impact of the power cuts. — Sapa
