The current water-shedding programme, neighbour reports of where the water is flowing right now, and the council's channels — including the WhatsApp line for meter readings.
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From Town Tools. For the current version, visit https://www.towntools.org/bulawayo-bulawayo-province-zw/water
Bulawayo's water comes from supply dams about 45 km south-east of the city and the Nyamandlovu boreholes to the north-west, pumped a long way uphill on grid power. When dams run low or pumps and power fail, council rations supply through published water-shedding programmes — most of the city is cut for set days each week, and residents track the schedule suburb by suburb.
This page holds the current programme as council has published it, and a neighbour board where residents confirm the water is back in their area — the same thing WhatsApp groups already do, in one place anyone can check.
No sector confirmed flowing in the last few hours.
Makokoba
No recent confirmation
Mzilikazi & Barbourfields
No recent confirmation
Entumbane
No recent confirmation
Mpopoma & Pelandaba
No recent confirmation
Njube
No recent confirmation
Tshabalala & Sizinda
No recent confirmation
Luveve
No recent confirmation
Gwabalanda
No recent confirmation
Lobengula & New Lobengula
No recent confirmation
Magwegwe
No recent confirmation
Pumula
No recent confirmation
Emakhandeni
No recent confirmation
Nkulumane
No recent confirmation
Nketa
No recent confirmation
Emganwini
No recent confirmation
Cowdray Park
No recent confirmation
City Centre (CBD)
No recent confirmation
Suburbs & Khumalo
No recent confirmation
Hillside & Burnside
No recent confirmation
Matsheumhlophe
No recent confirmation
Famona
No recent confirmation
Riverside & Waterford
No recent confirmation
Manningdale & the south-east
No recent confirmation
Sign in to confirm the water is flowing — accounts are free.
How this works
These reports come from neighbours, not the water utility. When the water reaches your sector, tap to share it — anyone can read the board, reporting takes a free account. A confirmation fades after about 12 hours, so what you see is recent. If neighbours confirm the water is on in your sector, it’s a good moment to fill tanks.
The current shedding programme: 72 hours a week
Council approved the 72-hour weekly water-shedding programme on 6 May 2026, replacing the 96-hour programme, and confirmed on 23 July 2026 that it stays in force. The reason it has not been eased further is worth knowing: the dams are in reasonable shape and the pumps are not. Council engineer Sikhumbuzo Ncube told councillors that only one of the two raw-water pumping lines was working — the Sulzer line, about 51 megalitres a day, where the two together can move about 105.
Which suburbs are cut on which days is published as council notices on citybyo.co.zw and on the council's Facebook page ('The City of Bulawayo'). The council website has been unreachable for months, and the schedule can slip when pumps break or power cuts hit the pumping stations.
Most suburbs
Around 72 hours without water each week, on rotating days published by council
Suburbs on the Tuli reservoir system
Longer cuts — around 96 to 120 hours — while pump repairs continue (last published as such in May 2026)Council notices say which suburbs this covers
Six supply dams feed the city: Insiza Mayfair, Inyankuni, Lower Ncema, Upper Ncema, Umzingwane and Mtshabezi. Good 2025–26 rains lifted combined storage to about 70% by the end of March 2026, and the dry season has drawn it back to about 65–66% by late July — with Insiza at about 85% and Mtshabezi close to full, and the four smaller dams below half. As Mayor Coltart has put it, full dams don't guarantee water: pumps, pipes and grid power decide what actually reaches town. The Dam Levels page here tracks the published figures in detail.
~65–66% combined storage (council figure, 23 July 2026)
Shedding notices are published at citybyo.co.zw and on the council's Facebook page, 'The City of Bulawayo'. The council website has been unreachable for months, so Facebook and the local newsrooms are in practice where notices appear. Report bursts and faults through the council's call centre — the current numbers are on council notices.
Rural / community water — BCC meter readings (WhatsApp)
Council asks residents to WhatsApp their meter reading with their account or house number every month to 0713 347 319. It matters: council's own report says 69% of 2025 water bills were estimates — a submitted reading is your best defence against an estimated bill.
When taps are dry, some households turn to shallow wells and open water. Health workers warn this raises the risk of cholera, dysentery and other diarrhoeal disease — especially for children under five. If you rely on borehole or well water, store it in clean covered containers and treat drinking water where you can.