The City of Cape Town says it is taking "proactive steps" by declaring a disaster area, with only 113 days of usable water left before taps run dry. Last week Western Cape head of water and sanitation Rashid Khan said Cape Town was in the "orange", meaning it had more than three months of water left and the department would not declare it a disaster area. But on Monday‚ the city announced that executive mayor Patricia de Lille declared a "local disaster" through an executive order under section 55 of the Disaster Management Act‚ and the council was not consulted.

Subscribe now to unlock this article.

Support BusinessLIVE’s award-winning journalism for R129 per month (digital access only).

There’s never been a more important time to support independent journalism in SA. Our subscription packages now offer an ad-free experience for readers.

Cancel anytime.

Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.

Speech Bubbles

Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.