Durban — A suspected copper thief who was electrocuted is believed to be behind a power outage in Isipingo.
That was according to the eThekwini Municipality after the suspect’s body was discovered.
In a statement, the municipality said the body of a suspected copper thief was discovered on Tuesday morning by City employees at the Isipingo sub-station.
It said Isipingo and surrounding areas were affected by a power outage in the early morning due to vandalism at the sub-station.
“City technicians were responding to an outage affecting residents of Isipingo and surrounding areas when they discovered extensive damage at the sub-station.
“An electrocuted body was also discovered. The deceased is believed to have been a copper thief,” the municipality said.
“Technicians have since isolated the sub-station.”
The municipality said that an alternative supply is being sourced and power is expected to be restored by Wednesday afternoon.
“The City once again condemns the theft of copper cables as it causes the loss of millions of rand every year. Residents are also subjected to constant blackouts because of this,” the municipality said.
“Officials will continue to intensify raids to combat cable theft around the City.”
Councillor Shad Nowbuth said that the teams are working very fast to restore power.
Nowbuth said that the power affects the pump stations and reservoirs, so it is a ripple affect.
“Half of Isipingo is affected,” Nowbuth said.
He said he will return to the sub-station to check on progress.
Meanwhile, there was a widespread power outage in eThekwini on Monday.
The municipality said the City was aware of a trip at the high voltage major sub-station in Klaarwater, south-west of Durban.
Many areas across the city are affected.
It is believed areas that were hit include Pinetown, Overport, Berea, Sydenham, Morningside, Greyville, Asherville, Mayville, Asherville, Glenwood, Westville, Merebank and Seaview.
The Chatsworth Crime Watch said reports were received from a number of areas such as the Upper Highway, Klaarwater, Mariannhill, Malvern and Durban North up to oThongathi.
Before evening, the municipality and some residents confirmed that power had been restored to parts of the city following the widespread power outage.
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