Tshwane mayor says Bronkhorstspruit water crisis is ‘indefensible’

Department of Water and Sanitation said it has warned the City of Tshwane about the quality of its water for years At least 595 people in Tshwane’s Region 7 fell ill with gastrointestinal illness between 7 and 19 October 2026 after the Bronkhorstspruit Water Treatment Works stopped disinfecting its water. This is according to government presentations to Parliament’s Portfolio Committee on Health on Friday, 23 October. No deaths were reported. Tshwane Mayor Nasiphi Moya admitted to Parliament’s health and water committees that the Bronkhorstspruit Water Treatment Works should never have stopped chlorinating its water. “This is indefensible, especially the issue of chlorine,” Moya told MPs. The Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) said missing chlorine was the cause rather than the plant’s other faults. “It must be emphasised that the cause of the gastrointestinal illnesses was the absence of chlorination, not the issues requiring repair described in the previous slide,” DWS stated in its presentation. The department said plant logbooks showed chlorine was last dosed on 23 September. The plant then operated for 21 more days before it was shut down on 14 October. The committee’s own statement gave 24 September as the start date. It also cited earlier media figures of about 433 cases. “Media reports indicate that about 433 people have fallen ill in an outbreak of acute gastrointestinal illness linked to unchlorinated water supplied by the Bronkhorstspruit Water Treatment Works in the City of Tshwane,” the committee noted. Who fell ill and where The Department of Health reported that 269 of the 595 patients, or 45%, were seen at Bronkhorstspruit Hospital. Children up to the age of four made up 262 cases, or 44%. Cases peaked at 75 on 11 October, and 47 more were reported on 19 October. Zithobeni was hit the hardest, with 176 cases, while Dark City recorded 129, Ekangala 108 and Rethabiseng 64. The health department said it checked the figures carefully before releasing them. “The line list is verified against patient records and demographics to guard against undercounting and duplication between clinics and the hospital,” the department explained. Laboratories confirmed norovirus, campylobacter, shigella and sapovirus in 11 of 17 reports received from 51 specimens. The department said this pattern pointed to the water supply. “Mixed pathogens and rapid spread point to a common water source,” it stated. Most patients were rehydrated and discharged within a day. The department warned that the isolation area, with 17 beds plus 20 overflow beds, could still come under pressure. “Longer stays would fill the area within one to two busy days,” it cautioned. What inspectors found at the plant DWS inspected the plant on 14 October, a day after the minister of health asked it to investigate. “On the day of the site inspection, chlorination was not taking place due to lack of supply of chlorine,” DWS said. DWS also criticised how the City of Tshwane told residents about the problem. The city’s letter on 13 October said the water was unfit to drink because of high turbidity. It did not warn of the microbial risk or the need to boil water. “CoT did not communicate that chlorination had stopped and that this could result in infectious pathogens being in the water,” DWS stated. The city issued a revised notice on 18 October on DWS’s advice. Samples taken on 14 and 15 October across the supply system showed severe contamination. “The tests found very high levels of E.coli throughout the water supply system,” DWS reported. The department opened a criminal case against the city on 18 October for failing to give information or giving misleading information. Is the water safe now? The plant was shut on the afternoon of 14 October, flushed and restarted. Supply resumed on the afternoon of 16 October. The Water Research Commission (WRC) then took 40 independent samples, and its results showed progress but not full safety. “The WRC results indicate an improvement since the chlorination recommenced, but that the water is still not safe,” DWS said. DWS explained why the independent tests mattered. “The reason for involving the WRC is to obtain independent test results to increase public confidence in the results,” the department stated. The WRC’s investigation into the cause of the outbreak will be completed by 28 October. Residents are relying on water tankers in the meantime. “Thirty-six tankers are utilised to provide alternate supply to Bronkhorstspruit,” the City of Tshwane told the committee. The water comes from the Cullinan hydrant, which DWS and the city have tested and found to meet drinking water standards. A Coca-Cola truck carrying 38 000 litres will join the effort from 26 October. Years of warnings and who is responsible DWS said the plant’s problems were not new. It issued a non-compliance letter in February 2026, and the city sent an action plan in March. “None of these commitments were implemented in the timeframes that were provided,” DWS stated. The department also pointed to a long record of poor results at the works, which scored 42.3% in the 2023 Blue Drop report. “Bronkhorstspruit WTW consistently performs poorly in terms of the quality of its drinking water according to the DWS Integrated Regulatory Information System,” it said. Sewage upstream adds to the problem. DWS said the Delmas and Botleng wastewater works, run by Victor Khanye Local Municipality, release barely treated effluent into the river that feeds the plant. Two broken city pump stations in Riamarpark and Lanham Street also leak sewage into the river. DWS argued that the constitution limits what national government can do. “The minister of water and sanitation does not have executive authority or power over the water services function,” the department said. It added that any national takeover has limits. “National intervention can only be temporary because it is an original power of municipalities,” DWS noted. Repairs and what happens next Rand Water assessed the plant between 20 and 23 October and found that sludge build-up meant about half the treated water was being discharged. “Subsequently, Rand Water has been appointed by the City of Tshwane to take the plant over,” Rand Water stated, adding that the service level agreement was still being finalised. The plant was decommissioned on 21 October for repairs. Rand Water said it will restart at 15 megalitres a day in the first week, increase to 25 megalitres a day in weeks two and three, and bring filters back one-by-one over weeks four to 16. DWS said the Delmas works upgrade, funded by a R330 million grant, would also help the river. “The project is approximately 80% complete and is due to be completed by December 2026,” the department noted. DWS also flagged problems at the Findley works that supply Pretoria’s central business district. These include no chlorination and E. coli readings above the national limit. The City of Tshwane has since issued a notice to residents there. Parliament is also considering the Water Services Amendment Bill, which would introduce operating licences for water service providers.