More than 200-million litres of raw sewage have spilled into three rivers in Gauteng, the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) reported on Thursday.
The Apies, Hennops and Pienaars rivers were all affected.
The broadcaster reported that the spillage had been caused by power failures at sewerage works because of Eskom’s load-shedding programme.
Officials told the SABC they received no official notification from Eskom about the load shedding.
Engineers from the Tshwane metropolitan council said it could take up to three weeks to correct the system.
Raw sewage did not contain any oxygen and the eggs of intestinal worms, viruses and parasites in the water held severe health risks for people and animals, the SABC said. — Sapa