Resilience is not enough: The mental health impact of the ongoing energy crisis in South Africa

Abstract

limited electricity supply by installing inverters, generators and solar panels in their homes and workplaces. The constant disruptions brought about by blackouts have led to an overwhelming sense of frustration and uncertainty, as people feel they have no control of their lives and environment. Breakages, cable theft, and sabotage exacerbate the situation by adding unscheduled outages, some for as long as 10 days. Outages are also increasingly leading to water shortages as reservoirs cannot refill in the short periods between outages, and to telecommunication problems. Significantly, such disruptions in work and educational activities, as well as in the domestic domain, have been shown internationally to increase psychological distress. 7 Disruption in electricity supply potentially further affects people’s physical health, which can in turn increase people’s risk of developing mental health problems. At the most basic level, food safety is affected as constant refrigeration cannot be guaranteed, placing people at risk of food poisoning and diarrhoeal diseases. Water purification systems also require electricity to function optimally, so load shedding leaves people without water or facing the threat of contaminated water. 7 South Africa has recently experienced a cholera outbreak and the contamination of rivers and sea water in different provinces, because sewage plants did not have electricity. 8,9