‘We are going to fail’: Student bemoans dark days of load shedding

South Africans across the country have been deeply affected by load shedding since Eskom implemented Stage 6 in the early hours of Sunday 18 September. This had led to President Cyril Ramaphosa cutting his overseas trip short. Ramaphosa will return to Mzansi to deal with the energy crisis following Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral in the United Kingdom on Monday 19 September. 

In a TikTok video directed at Eskom, a university student said he was going to fail his exams because his laptop only works when it’s plugged into the wall. 

ALSO READ: Stage 6 loadshedding to stay indefinitely, Eskom says

UNIVERSITY STUDENT CRIES OUT TO ESKOM 

Eskom ramped up load shedding to Stage 6 after generation units at Kriel and Kusile power stations tripped. Sadly for South Africans, this means that we’ll be in the dark at least three times a day. 

Taking to TikTok on Sunday 18 September, @giftbozekana1, a Wits University student cried out to the power utility about his laptop issues due to load shedding. In his video, the student said his laptop was like “a fridge” and only works when its plugged in.

“They only work when they are plugged in. We are going to fail this year,” said the student. 

TAKE A LOOK 

@giftbozekana1

♬ original sound – Gift Kelton Bozekana

MORE STUDENTS SHARE THEIR FRUSTRATIONS 

The university student’s TikTok video sparked other students to share their frustrations in the comments section. One student said she had missed a test due to load shedding. 

“That’s my laptop. Couldn’t finish my assignment on time,” wrote @Witnessrofu. 

“I thought I was the only one with a laptop like a fridge,” wrote @Ntswaki Leboko. 

“They don’t understand that our laptops are on life support,” wrote @KevinOratileKO.

“My exams are online venue based, I don’t know how I’m going to write. I’m worried,” wrote @Patti. 

ALSO READ: Stage 6 load shedding: Tips to cope during dark times ahead

ESKOM’S ‘SYSTEM IS UNDER PRESSURE’

In a media briefing on 18 September, Eskom CEO (Chief Executive Officer) André de Ruyter said there will be high stages of load shedding this week. 

“The system has been under pressure the past week. This has caused us to run our reserves, our diesel and our dams, very high.”

We are in a situation now where we urgently need to replenish those reserves to maintain an adequate safety buffer as we are required to do by the grid code,” said de Ruyter.