Perhaps there is no greater visual representation of Eskom’s current situation than one of its own conveyer belts catching fire. The site at Kriel has left onlookers concerned, after huge flames and billowing smoke filled the skies above.
Eskom mine goes up in smoke
Kriel was one of the power plants that experienced a unit failure over the weekend, plunging South Africa in Stage 6 of load shedding. The plant itself has been something of a ‘problem child’ over the years for Eskom – and this incident has proved to be no exception.
Stage 5 outages will remain in place into Tuesday. Cape Town gets some very mild relief, and will only operate at Stage 4. The punishing power cuts have forced Cyril Ramaphosa to cancel his remaining foreign engagements, and he is heading home to Mzansi this afternoon.
Kriel catches fire – but there is some good news, we suppose…
The large scale fire has caused some anxiety amongst the general public, who have been left to wonder if this is the final nail in the coffin which takes us through to STAGE 8 load shedding. However, Eskom has provided some reassurance to the nation.
In a statement shared to Twitter, the utility revealed that the fire had only impacted a conveyor belt at Kriel Mine. The power plant itself remains unaffected. That means there will be no detriment to the energy grid, and the rest of us can breathe an almighty sigh of relief:
“The video below depicts a fire impacting a conveyor belt at Kriel Mine – not at the power station. This will have no impact on the power station as it is receiving coal from an open pit and by road.” | Eskom statement
Watch: Conveyor belt on fire at Eskom plant
It really does come to something when one of your mines is burning down, and the official response is along the lines of; ‘it could be worse’. Kriel will continue to contribute to the national energy supply, while emergency crews response to the blaze…
The video below depicts a fire impacting a conveyor belt at Kriel Mine – not at the power station. This will have no impact on the power station as it is receiving coal from an open pit and by road. pic.twitter.com/RtYIXYey9N
— Eskom Hld SOC Ltd (@Eskom_SA) September 19, 2022
By Khamisi
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