Gauteng water outages today (4 November 2026): affected areas, causes and when water returns
Tshwane, Ekurhuleni and nearby towns may still have dry taps or low pressure on 4 November as reservoirs refill after the Mapleton pumping station outage.
Parts of Tshwane, Ekurhuleni and nearby municipalities may still have dry taps or low pressure on Wednesday, 4 November 2026, as reservoirs slowly refill after the Mapleton pumping station outage. Rand Water says pumping resumed at about 15:10 on Tuesday, but supply will only stabilise once reservoir levels recover (African Times).
Which areas are affected?
Rand Water says consumers supplied by these municipalities may keep seeing shortages or low pressure during the recovery (African Times):
| Municipality | Province |
|---|---|
| Ekurhuleni | Gauteng |
| Tshwane | Gauteng |
| Lesedi | Gauteng |
| Govan Mbeki | Mpumalanga |
| Victor Khanye | Mpumalanga |
| Thembisile Hani | Mpumalanga |
How are Tshwane's reservoirs doing?
In its Wednesday update, the City of Tshwane said supply in Regions 1, 3, 4 and 6 is improving, but some reservoirs remain critically low (African Times):
| Region | Improving | Still under pressure |
|---|---|---|
| Region 1 | Generally stable; Soshanguve L Tower refilling | Klipgat and Magalies/Rosslyn declining |
| Region 3 | Carina Street rising; Heights High and Low Level stabilising | Klapperkop critically low; high-lying areas wait for pumping to resume |
| Region 4 | Atteridgeville High Level stable | Bakenkop, Brakfontein, Clifton and Doringkloof low to moderate |
| Region 6 | Garsfontein stable | Erasmusrand and Mooikloof declining |
What caused it?
Power to Rand Water's Mapleton pumping station, which gets its electricity from the City of Ekurhuleni, failed at 20:35 on Monday, 2 November, stopping pumping completely (African Times). Ekurhuleni earlier said lightning struck the overhead lines feeding the Mapleton substation (TimesLIVE).
When will water return?
There is no official time for full restoration. Rand Water and Ekurhuleni say supply will come back gradually as reservoirs refill, and Tshwane warns that high use could push levels down again (African Times). Yesterday's developments are in our 3 November article.
What should residents do?
Use water only for essentials, fix leaking taps and pipes, and don't water gardens, wash cars with a hosepipe or fill pools, Tshwane says. Residents who still have water are also asked to cut back so struggling reservoirs can recover (African Times). Report leaks or long outages through your municipality's official channels.
FAQ
Is the Mapleton pumping station working again?
Yes. Rand Water says pumping resumed at about 15:10 on Tuesday, 3 November, but reservoirs need time to refill.
Why do I still have no water if pumping has resumed?
Reservoir levels dropped during the outage, so supply is being restored gradually, and high consumption slows the recovery.
Which Tshwane reservoirs are critically low?
Tshwane named Klapperkop in Region 3 as critically low, with Klipgat, Magalies/Rosslyn, Erasmusrand and Mooikloof declining.