Selby businesses forced to spend thousands to stay afloat amid Joburg’s water crisis
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Read the original article: https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2026-04-14-hundreds-of-jobs-at-risk-as-s…
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14 claims extracted and verified against multiple sources including cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia.
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“Cecil Kagan, CEO of furniture company Calgan Recliners, should be using revenues to buy new equipment, hire new staff and expand operations to compete with international competitors such as China.”
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“he’s forced to sink another R60,000 into drilling a borehole for the third time in the hopes of reaching a stable supply of water.”
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“Kagan’s company is based in Selby, an industrial suburb in Johannesburg which has been battling an extended water crisis since as early as October 2025.”
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“On 7 April 2026, businesses were still facing an inconsistent water supply, with cuts lasting from a few hours to weeks.”
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“For Kagan’s factory, which employs between 700 and 800 people, the lack of water causes day-to-day disruptions, including a lack of sanitary ablution facilities for staff.”
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“It cost us over R2-million to build a tank for the water so that we can retain our insurance policies. Otherwise the insurance won’t insure us. And you can’t run a business like this without fire insurance because if you do that, the banks won’t lend you the money to run the business because they’re at huge risk”
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“Kagan is not alone. The deepening crisis has raised the cost of business for many in the area, particularly on Trump Street. Further up the road, Chemosol, a printing business that employs 45 people and has been in the area for 40 years, has been without water for two months.”
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“The business used to have its JoJo tanks filled for free by Joburg Water. But Notlowitz said that since the water crisis deepened across the city earlier this year, the tankers no longer come regularly. As a result, it has to spend R9,000 a week on 15 kilolitres of water to fill out the tanks and remain operational.”
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“The city’s water supplies continue to crumble, largely driven by failing infrastructure and vandalism, resulting in nearly half of all clean water being lost to burst pipes and leaky reservoirs.”
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“The official opposition party, the DA, has been sounding the warning bells since October 2025, when it said that up to 4,000 jobs are at risk because of the water crisis in Selby.”
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“A News24 report found that hundreds of staff members in Selby factories were without permanent work because of the impact the water crisis had on operational costs.”
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“Julian Gounder, the manager for 1 Stop Auto Glass, said the water situation has worsened over the six weeks as the City has done repair work on infrastructure.”
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“Johannesburg Water has introduced a WhatsApp-based tanker request system, but this remains unreliable. Tankers are often delayed, do not arrive, or fail to deliver as scheduled. Moreover, the lack of clarity around billing for these services makes accurate budget planning difficult”
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“Previously, Johannesburg Water told eNCA that the in Selby crisis was caused by severe damage to a 900mm pipeline linked to the Hector Norris pump station and that repair work is ongoing. However, no completion date was given.”
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