Joburg Water spokesperson Isaac Dhludhlu said the warning comes after the South African Weather Service advised residents on Monday to prepare themselves for scorching temperatures especially in Gauteng, parts of the Eastern Cape, Free State, North West and parts of the Garden Route.

Temperatures are expected to climb on Tuesday 35% over what is normally expected in parts of Gauteng.

Use water wisely

“We have been notified that this week is going to be extremely hot. We continue to urge communities that we supply with water, to use it wisely. Our province has challenges of water scarcity at times,” Dhludhlu said.

Dhludhlu called on consumers to keep their bodies hydrated by consuming water regularly and having a bottle of water next to them.

To those walking, Dhludhlu advised them to carry umbrellas to protect them from the sun.

Potential restrictions

“Our endeavour is to provide quality water to our consumers. Where our systems can’t cope we will start with water restrictions and quickly alert the affected communities. Consumers should remember that we get our water supply from Rand Water and once they notice a high usage they alert us, and we restrict usages.”

Dhludhlu urged residents to have a bucket of 20 litres filled with water in their homes, in case restrictions are applied.

He said the problematic areas in terms of high water usage were Midrand, northern suburbs and parts in the south of Johannesburg.

“We will continue to monitor all our reservoirs around the City of Johannesburg, and in those areas where water usage is high. As and when water levels in our reservoirs drop because of high demand, we will close them up to build capacity.”

Dhludhlu asked that communities be patient if water needs to be restricted during this period. DM