The City of Cape Town has issued a warning that municipal water can only be used for essential purposes — drinking, cooking and washing.
The Western Cape has been declared a disaster area, and next week Level 4 water restrictions will be implemented.
Currently dam storage levels are at a disastrous 20,7 percent.
The City said it has allocated R22 million to employ additional staff to fix water faults.
“Every single water user must use less than 100 litres per person per day. This is not negotiable,” the City’s Water and Waste Services Councillor Xanthea Limberg said.
You can follow these tips to save water:
- Toilet — If it’s yellow, let it mellow. If it’s brown, flush it down.
- Take a two-minute shower.
- Use grey from the shower, bath and basin to flush your toilet, and for the garden.
- Defrost food naturally rather than placing it under running water.
- Use a cup for brushing teeth, shaving and drinking water.
- The rinse water from the washing machine can be reused for the next wash cycle.
- Switch to an efficient showerhead.
- Upgrade to a multi-flush toilet and/or put a water displacement item in the cistern which can halve your water use per flush
- Regularly check for leaks on your property and fix them urgently.
Residents are encouraged to contact the City at water@capetown.gov.za or SMS to 31373 for queries.