The Gauteng Department of Health says the water challenges at Charlotte Maxeke Johannesburg Academic Hospital (CMJAH) are due to changes in the water systems implemented by Johannesburg Water.
The hospital began experiencing low water pressure in the early hours of Monday morning. An investigation by technicians found that Johannesburg Water had cut the water supply to the facility’s bulk water tanks on September 13.
Khutso Rabothata, Acting Head of Communication in the department, said hospital management had prioritised emergency cases and diverted all elective surgeries to nearby facilities until the water challenges were resolved by Johannesburg Water.
”In an effort to ensure that patient care is not compromised, the department has secured the supply of water from Johannesburg Water and bottles of water, which were delivered overnight. Engagements with Johannesburg Water are ongoing to expedite a solution,” said Rabothata.
He said the department regretted any inconvenience caused by the water challenges experienced at CMJAH. “While contingency measures are in place, health facilities still rely on a consistent water supply from the relevant authorities to provide essential health services.
“The department remains committed to providing quality healthcare to all citizens. We continue to take every measure to ensure that service delivery is not compromised, even during challenging situations. The safety and well-being of our patients is our top priority, and we will continue to work diligently to resolve this issue as swiftly as possible,” said Rabothata.
Johannesburg Water on Tuesday said it was working around the clock to boost supplies to Charlotte Maxeke Hospital, and areas impacted by Parktown 2 Reservoir challenges.
The entity said its technical teams worked through the night at the hospital, investigating solutions to boost their supply.
“After reconfiguration of the Parktown 2 system, which meant closing the outlet side of the reservoir, water was successfully channelled into Charlotte Maxeke storage to satisfactory levels, enabling the hospital to start pumping into their internal reticulation from this morning,” said Johannesburg Water in a media statement.
The entity said water tankers were deployed since Monday night and into the early hours of Tuesday morning to further assist in filling the hospital’s storage.
“Currently, the Parktown 2 Reservoir is completely closed to build up capacity to supply the hospital, which is impacting the entire zone, thus the supply zone is dry. Once the levels improve, supply will be restored.
“The poor to no supply in the zone is due to the combination of insufficient supply from the bulk supplier and high demand. Johannesburg Water is engaging the bulk supplier to address the root cause of the poor bulk supply,” said the entity.
The entity’s teams were continuing their investigations.
“These investigations require consistent intervention and troubleshooting. The reservoir remains reconfigured to boost incoming supply. However, there is no estimated time of restoration at this stage,” said Johannesburg Water.
Meanwhile, the entity said the Berea Reservoir had declined but was supplying fairly. Poor pressure may occur while supply was reconfigured to boost supply at the Parktown 2 Reservoir.
The entity said it was monitoring and making necessary adjustments to keep the system stable.
It said the Dunkeld Reservoir was critically low to empty. The inlet remained open, but the reservoir was affected by the reconfiguration of the Parktown 2 Reservoir. Poor pressure to no water was expected in the supply zone.
“Johannesburg Water remains resolute to closely monitor all three reservoirs and make immediate necessary adjustments to improve the situation. Alternative water supply continues to be provided,” said the entity.
The Star