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Your daily horoscope: January 14, 2025

  HOROSCOPES IF TODAY IS YOUR BIRTHDAY If your current way of working does not seem to be taking you closer to your goals then ditch it completely and start over. New technologies such as artificial intelligence could help you immensely this year, IF you have the intelligence to use them wisely. ARIES (March 21 - April 20): There is a lot of pressure building up in your life at the moment but that’s okay because you thrive on being challenged. When the going gets tough Aries is the first sign to get tough in return and today will be no exception. TAURUS (April 21 - May 21): You may be in two minds about what direction you should be taking but what occurs over the next 24 hours will point the way and all you have to do is follow the lead that the universe gives you. Get past your doubts and get moving. GEMINI (May 22 - June 21): If you start something new today it will take up a lot more time and energy than you expected, so think about it carefully and make sure you will be able to...

Johannesburg Faces Unprecedented Water Crisis: Taps Run Dry

 

For the past two weeks, Tsholofelo Moloi has stood in line with thousands of South Africans, waiting for water. Johannesburg, the country’s largest city, is grappling with an unprecedented collapse of its water system, affecting millions of people. This crisis has left residents, both rich and poor, facing a shortage of severity they’ve never witnessed before.

Several factors have converged to create this dire situation. First, hot weather has led to shrinking reservoirs. But the real culprit lies in decades of neglect and crumbling infrastructure. Johannesburg’s water system has suffered from lack of maintenance, exacerbating the crisis.

South Africa, already familiar with hours-long electricity shortages, is now adopting a term called “watershedding”. Just as loadshedding refers to power outages, watershedding means going without water. Moloi, a Soweto resident, expresses the stress her community faces: “We need to cook, children must attend school, and we need water to wash their clothes. It’s very stressful.”

Over the weekend, water management authorities warned that failure to reduce water consumption could lead to a total collapse of the water system. Reservoirs might drop below 10% capacity, necessitating shutdowns for replenishment. Imagine weeks without water from taps, especially as demand remains high due to scorching weather.

As World Water Day approaches, activists and residents are outraged. They see this as a crisis that has been brewing for years. The ruling African National Congress faces a serious challenge in this year’s election, with public frustration reaching dangerous levels.

Johannesburg, once accustomed to localized water shortages, now grapples with a citywide drought. The arrival of winter is weeks away, and no official drought declaration has been made. Residents are urged to conserve water, but for many, the cost of a 1.3-gallon bottle of water is steep in a country where over 32% of the population is unemployed.

The taps have run dry, and Johannesburg’s water crisis demands urgent attention. 

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