Theft and vandalism are suspected to have caused the fire which engulfed underground tunnels along the M1 near Smit Street in Joburg, resulting in several communities being left in the dark.
City Power spokesperson, Isaac Mangena said the fire started on Tuesday night, but had been put out by Wednesday.
“The fire was put out but started again in the early hours on Wednesday morning. This affected power supply to area including Braamfontein, part of Joburg CBD, parts of Parktown, parts of Newtown, among others. Preliminary findings indicate that a cable connecting Braamfontein substation to the Fordsburg substation caught fire during the suspected cable theft and vandalism,” said Mangena.
“The City Power teams have been on site since (Tuesday) night and will remain until the site is handed to them by the emergency services. This is expected to happen on Thursday morning where the work to assess the extent of the damage caused by the fire to the electricity infrastructure will be made. Also, the cause will be ascertained.”
M1 highway JHB closed: underground fire near the railway line adjacent to Smit Street. pic.twitter.com/tYFtUyxT6Q
Mangena said at the site, City Power team reacting to the fire had recovered tools such as hacksaw, cutter, screw drivers – equipment which is often used in incidents of vandalism and theft.
A mobile phone was also recovered from the site of the fire.
City Power said work towards restoration will start after the smoke has cleared in the tunnels and the temperatures, which had shot to around 200°c during the inferno, have cooled off in the tunnel.
“We expect to start the work mid-morning on Thursday, which will include clearing the rubble, assess the extent of the damaged electrical infrastructure - the outcome of which will determine the repairs and restoration plans, and expected time of restoration. Meanwhile, our technicians are also working on alternatives to see if some of the areas cannot be back-fed through our Fort and Bree substations nearby,” said Mangena.
“We will advice our customers of any developments in the morning (on Thursday). We apologise for the inconvenience this caused, including to the motorists who use the M1 highway between Braamfontein and the Crown Interchange.”
On Wednesday, IOL reported that City Power underground cables in the Braamfontein area were on fire due to suspected cable theft and vandalism, resulting in power outages in surrounding areas, including Parktown.
The Johannesburg Emergency Management Services’ fire division, which was on the scene, also reported on Wednesday that parts of the M1 highway between Empire Road and the Crown Interchange had been closed off to traffic to allow officials to do their work.
Meanwhile, in an update, City of Johannesburg emergency management services on Thursday said they will be returning to the scene, to conduct an assessment along the underground tunnel.
The Joburg EMS said it would be checking for “any flare ups and also to ensure that the tunnel is safe before it is handed over” to City Power to conduct its own assessments about the damage caused by the inferno.
IOL