According to municipal spokesperson, Zongezile Ntjwabule, the water outage is due to cable theft and vandalism of the substation at the town's water purification facility.

It is alleged that a group of cable thieves overpowered security personnel and caused serious damage to the electrical infrastructure.

However, the municipality has not yet provided clarity as to whether a criminal case has been lodged with the police, and whether any suspects have been arrested following this alleged incident.

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Ntjwabulo adds that the Municipality is considering transporting a generator from the Brandfort water treatment plants to Theunissen as an immediate solution.

Meanwhile, water will be delivered to the community via tanks. The Masilonyana Municipality has apologized for any inconvenience caused, Ntjwabule added.

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Masilonyana is amongst the municipalities that appeared at a National Council of Provinces (NCOP) sittings, held by the Free State Legislature, over its state of water and sanitation affairs.

This, as NCOP delegates embarked on a five-day oversight visit in the province to assess and evaluate these affairs across municipalities, where residents previously aired their anger and frustration about the lack of water and sanitation infrastructure.

OFM News