A Hanover Park family were happy to have their electricity restored after going nearly a week without power.
Desmond Isaacs’s grandson lives with his family in a wendy house in the yard of his grandfather’s Athia Walk home in Hanover Park.
The City installed a prepaid electricity meter in the wendy house three years ago, according to Mr Isaacs, but, on Friday October 25, the power went out in the wendy house and couldn’t be turned back on. The occupants had to use the electricity in the main house.
A City official who came out to assess the problem said another contractor would come out to restore the power.
But by Wednesday October 30, the family were still without power and Mr Isaacs called the Athlone News. After a reporter emailed
the City’s media office, an official came out to restore the family’s power.
Mayco member for energy and climate change Phindile Maxiti said the City had made an initial assessment of the problem but staff relied on City law enforcement to accompany them.
Mr Isaacs said his family feared for their safety as men had jumped onto the roof of the main house and tried unsuccessfully to steal the electricity cable last Tuesday.
“I have spent over R100 airtime already calling the City nearly five times and so has my grandson and his wife also, and now only they have come out. This is utterly ridiculous because every time they had a different story and said that they need the police to come out, but the area is quiet. When they came out first, they said that someone must have cut the cable as it was left in my neighbour’s yard.
“They came with law enforcement and fixed the cable, and I asked them why I had to call so many times and they said that they were scared to come into the area.”