Deputy President Paul Mashatile has assured residents of Bronkhorstspruit, east of Pretoria, that alternative water supplies will remain available while the local water treatment plant is closed.
The plant was shut down following reports of water contamination linked to an outbreak of gastrointestinal illness in the area, with more than 500 cases reported.
Briefing the media in Bronkhorstspruit in his capacity as chairperson of the Inter-Ministerial Committee on Water and Sanitation, Mashatile expressed concern about the safety of water supplied by private operators.
He says authorities are working to ensure that residents continue to have access to water while efforts to address the situation at the treatment plant are underway.
“Arrangements have been made for people to get water from other sources. We are quite concerned about private suppliers of water with water tankers because we don’t know where they get that water from,” Mashatile said.
He added that an intervention would be implemented to inspect private water suppliers and establish the sources of their water.
Mashatile assured residents that the City of Tshwane would continue supplying water in the interim to ensure that no one is left without access to the essential service.
The water treatment plant remains closed while the situation is being addressed.