Leaking pipes and failing reservoirs deepen South Africa’s water crisis

Ageing infrastructure, leaking pipes and strained supply networks are causing prolonged water outages across South Africa and wasting millions of litres of treated water. The DA says Johannesburg, Tshwane and Ekurhuleni together lose about one billion litres a day through physical water losses, while parts of Pinetown South in KwaZulu-Natal have faced disruptions for nearly two weeks. Johannesburg Water reports supply constraints in several systems, including Sandton, Midrand, Randburg, Roodepoort, Commando and Central; its teams and bulk supplier Rand Water are assessing conditions and working on interventions. DA spokesperson Stephen Moore accuses municipalities of restricting supply and says Rand Water is throttling water to Johannesburg.