News, 14 October 2026
Power Cut Hits uMdloti Beach and La Mercy After Substation Fault
Updated · Sources
In short
A severe fault at the uMdloti Beach substation cut power to uMdloti Beach, La Mercy, Desainager and nearby areas from the early hours of Wednesday 14 October 2026. eThekwini said supply to these customers was fully restored by its 10am update on Thursday 15 October.
Power went off in uMdloti Beach, La Mercy, Desainager and nearby areas in the early hours of Wednesday 14 October 2026, after a severe fault at the uMdloti Beach substation. eThekwini Municipality said a second fault, at the Westmead substation inland, happened the same morning but was not related.
The city said both faults damaged the 11kV busbar sections that carry electricity around each substation. Teams carried out repairs on the Wednesday and worked through the night on temporary repairs.
In its 10am update on Thursday 15 October, the city said supply was fully restored to customers on the uMdloti Beach substation. Time Out Durban also listed Waterloo among the areas affected, and East Coast Radio listed oThongathi Beach Rural.
The city’s warning of poor-quality supply over the next few months was made for customers on the Westmead substation. For other outages and works around the village, see the status page.
- Date
- 14 October 2026
- Type
- News
- Status
- Resolved
Dated item, kept as filed. Corrections and later developments are added as new entries on the news timeline.
Checked and sources
Every fact on this page comes from one of these, or from the place itself. Spot something out of date? The listing page says how to send a fix.