/ 24 October 2007

Power cut leaves Jo’burg hospital with no electricity

The Eikenhof Clinic, south of Johannesburg, has not had power for the past two weeks, the provincial health department said on Wednesday.

Spokesperson Zanele Mngadi said Eskom cut the electricity two weeks ago because the electricity bill had not been paid.

”The account was not paid because of administration challenges and we are currently in talks with Eskom,” she said.

Democratic Alliance health spokesperson Jack Bloom said hundreds of patients were being turned away from the clinic because of power problems.

Mngadi denied these claims.

”Patients were not turned away. We are treating the ones we can and transporting others to the [Lillian Ngoyi] health centre”.

Mngadi said they were going to send a generator to the clinic while talks with Eskom were under way. — Sapa