eThekwini Municipality’s Water and Sanitation Department says they’ve installed in excess of 50 000 restrictors and will put in more to stabilise the system.

It wants to avoid a situation where the city’s 263 reservoirs run dry, according to a report by East coast Radio.

Head of the department, Ednick Msweli met with members of the Durban Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Pinetown this afternoon as they want to rope in the private sector to help address water shortages in the city.

The persistent drought and non-compliance with voluntary restrictions has led to the city taking matters into its own hands and controlling the flow of water at the source.

Consumption has been reduced by between 10 and 15% after a directive from the national department.

Msweli says the loss of water remains a problem for the city.

“We really appeal for assistance from the community. If you see people stealing water, report [it]. If you see illegal connections, report [it] and we will be there to deal with those. Of course, we also lose water through leaks as well when the system fails – which talks to the age of our system. It means our system is old, but we are doing our best to repair the leaks as fast as we can,” he said.

–East Coast Radio