JOHANNESBURG - When a burst pipe hit Northcliff, Johannesburg, early on Sunday morning, the community had no idea what it was in for.
What started as an inconvenience soon became a more than four-day ordeal, leaving around 1,500 households without water.
The first Johannesburg Water team reacted to the burst pipe and started repairs.
But once the leak was fixed, they realised there was a bigger problem, and so began a struggle the community never expected.
By the evening, it became clear that there was a major issue, with taps running dry around the suburb.
Ward 88 Councillor, Nicolene Jonker, said the real work was about to begin.
A Joburg Water team returned to the area, trying to find out why water from the reservoir was not reaching the water tower above.
At first, fearing there was a problem with the pump, the team worked tirelessly on-site, braving the rain and long hours, trying to fix the issue.
However, it was not easy. The problem was more complicated, with various setbacks.
According to Jonker, two teams were then dispatched to the area.
At the same time, many residents took to neighbourhood WhatsApp groups to complain about the dry taps, growing increasingly frustrated.
On Monday, Jonker says workers came back to finish off the job they had started.
The teams were now working around the clock, trying to find the unexplained problem.
And with Jonker onsite, the Northcliff community quickly sprung into action.
As the teams worked into the early hours, residents didn’t just sit back and watch from the sidelines, they came out in full support.
"The community assisted by bringing their lights, as it was too dark. Others came with food. I even had a CPF member come with coffee, and I remember how good it felt because it was so cold that day.”
"I cannot tell you how much this meant to the team. I think their gratitude motivated them to push on and assist the community," she said.
At some stage, Jonker said even some local engineers came out to offer solutions to solve the problem.
By Wednesday, Johannesburg Water had finally identified the issue, a valve on the pipe running to the tower was stuck in the closed position, preventing the flow of water.
This was followed by many more hours of struggle without access to the required equipment.
The workers had to use whatever they had on hand, including the power of two excavators.
It didn’t end well, with broken chains, broken hydraulic jacks, and a stuck valve that was impossible to open.
The only solution was to remove it.
The water utility realised its team had to remove the concrete slab covering the chamber to gain access to the small space.
"When the second team came in, they knew what they had to deal with."
It took two days to remove the valve, and install a new section of pipe, with water eventually reaching homes again at about 8pm on Thursday night.
The relief and gratitude among residents was palpable, with messages of support and thanks flooding the WhatsApp groups.
There is even a suggestion to crowdfund a reward for Jonker, and the Johannesburg Water workers for their tireless effort.
But with this happy ending to the story, another water crisis again highlights frustrations over the lack of maintenance and ageing infrastructure.
According to the 2023 Blue Dot report, 277 of 958 (29%) water supply systems are in a critical state, compared to 174 in 2014.
The most common problems with these systems are vandalism, and dysfunctional pumping and treatment infrastructure.
Add to this equipment failures due to a lack of maintenance, lack of flow monitoring, the non-compliance of drinking water and failure to notify water users of compromised water quality.
Recently Johannesburg Water announced that it has shut down supplies due to a burst pipe in Randburg, bringing with it a drop in water pressure, or no water, to areas including Bordeaux, Ferndale, Blairgowrie, Moret, and parts of Bryanston, Kensington B.
During the 2025 Water Indaba, the Department of Water and Sanitation committed to prioritising the country’s water, and Councillor Jonker said Northcliff residents have put their own contingency plan in place.
She said some members of the community, at their own expense, have drilled boreholes as a backup water source.
And when the taps do run dry, like they did this last week, residents with boreholes open their hearts, and their taps, to share the precious resource with their neighbours.
bY Zandile Khumalo