City Power in Johannesburg said its engineers will today conduct test after an underground fire along the M1 highway near Smit Street and the double-decker section between Braamfontein substation and Fordsburg substation.
The site was handed over to the power utility yesterday afternoon by the Johannesburg Emergency Management Services (EMS) concluded inspection.
“The local power utility will only start work towards supply restoration after tests to assess the gas levels in the tunnels have been conducted.
“The Johannesburg Roads Agency (JRA) also needs to assess the structural integrity of the tunnel, to ascertain that it will not collapse and harm technicians while on duty.
“When these two safety aspects have been addressed, City Power will start clearing the rubble and assessing the extent of the damage caused by the fire on the electricity infrastructure,” said City Power spokesperson, Isaac Mangena.
Mangena added that the outcome will determine the scope of work and the estimated time of completion of repairs.
Meanwhile, the entity said it is continuing with alternative options to restore power supply to the affected customers by means of back-feeding through the Fort and Bree Substations.
On Thursday it managed to restore supply to Metro Centre, Liberty Life, Braampark, other office buildings in the Braamfontein area, and will continue to communicate developments on site to the affected customers in Braamfontein, parts of the CBD, Newtown, Parktown and surrounds.
According to Mangena, preliminary investigations revealed that the fire occurred due to acts of theft and vandalism of the electricity equipment on Tuesday night.
A hacksaw, screwdriver, and other tools, alongside a cellphone, were recovered on the scene on Wednesday.
“On Wednesday night, City Power’s security team had to exchange fire with criminals living in makeshift squatter camp under the M1 along Carr Street, after they were found busy attempting to steal the cable that got burnt during the fire.
“A substantial amount of cable had already been cut and put in recycling bags, but the security personnel managed to recover all of it.
“Fortunately, no one was injured, and a criminal complaint has been lodged with the South African Police Service,” explained the spokesperson.
