Durban – The eThekwini Municipality has urged residents to report cable theft after spending over R40 million to replace six tons of stolen cables in the past financial year. It said cable theft affected businesses and residents.
The municipality said cable theft and illegal electricity connections were some of the challenges that crippled electricity distribution in the city.
“Multiple electricity breakdowns are mainly due to the theft of cables and connecting to the grid illegally. The city has appealed on numerous occasions for the public to report cable theft in order to curb it.”
However, according to the municipality, the theft continued.
Cable theft not only damaged infrastructure, it impacted residents and businesses who bore the brunt of this criminal behaviour, it said.
“In the last financial year, the city spent over R40m to replace six tons of stolen cables. The city lost revenue of R785m owing to this dangerous and illegal practice.”
This budget could have been used for service delivery projects and community development programmes, the municipality said.
Cable theft had a domino effect, it said, because power outages led to water supply problems because water pumps were operated by electricity.
“This is why some areas are constantly experiencing water outages, resulting in the malfunctioning of water pumps. Sewerage pump stations also use electricity to pump raw sewage to treatment works.
“In the event of cable theft at these stations, operations grind to a halt, resulting in sewage ending up in clean water resources.”
The municipality said 16 people had already been convicted of crimes relating to cable theft. Their sentences ranged from jail time to fines.
It said about 55 cases were currently in court.
“The city will continue to leave no stone unturned to address cable theft … The city once again appeals to the public to work with law enforcement authorities to fight cable theft.”