The Nation Newspaper

Tag: electrocuted

  • 17-year-old boy electrocuted in Lagos

    17-year-old boy electrocuted in Lagos

    The Police Command in Lagos State has confirmed the death of a 17-year-old boy who was electrocuted while working with his step-father at a building construction site.

    The Public Relations Officer of the command, SP Benjamin Hundeyin, confirmed this to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Saturday.

    Hundeyin said the mother of the boy, whose name was not given, reported the case to the Agbado Police Division on August 2, at 1.00 pm.

    He said the woman reported that at about 12.30 pm on the same day, she received a phone call from her younger brother about the incident.

    According to the woman, her brother said that her son followed her husband (his step-father), a welder, to build a scaffolding in a building under construction at Church Street, Alagbado.

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    Hundeyin said: “In the process of work, the boy stepped on life wire that was carelessly connected from an electric pole and he died on the spot.

    “He was rushed to the hospital and was confirmed dead by the doctor on duty.“The scene was visited by a team of detectives from the division.

    “The corpse has been removed from the scene. “However, no mark of violence was seen.

    “The step-father has been brought to the station for questioning.

  • Ex-PHCN worker electrocuted

    Ex-PHCN worker electrocuted

    A former worker of the defunct Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) has been electrocuted in Agbor, Ika South Local Government of Delta State.

    He was illegally working on high tension lines when electricity was restored.

    The deceased, Monday Eboh, hailed from Idumu Esah, in Ika North East Local Government.

    It was learnt that had lost his job and worked as an electrician.

    The Corporate Affairs Officer of Benin Electricity Distribution Company (BEDC), Asaba/Agbor, Mrs. Esther Okolie, said the deceased was wanted for his illegal activities, which destroyed BEDC’s transformers.

    She said he was dismissed in 2009.

    Okolie said the deceased was illegally diverting lines from one feeder to another when power was restored.

     

  • BEDC worker electrocuted in Ondo

    A worker of the Benin Electricity Distribution Company (BEDC), Daisi Aregbesola, was at the weekend electrocuted in Akure, the Ondo State capital.

    The incident, which occurred around 5 p.m on Saturday, caught the attention of some passers-by, mostly motorists, who tried in vain to save the electricity worker, whose body was dangling from the high tension wire.

    The BEDC worker, who reportedly resumed for work early, was said to have been instructed by his boss to rectify a fault on an electric pole in front of a new generation bank at Alagbaka in Akure.

    Aregbesola, fondly called Sapee, was as an electrical engineer and a contract worker at the BEDC branch office at Alagbaka in Akure.

    He was 38.

    One of the eyewitnesses told reporters yesterday that he was attracted to the scene when he heard people screaming.

    One of the sympathisers, who spoke in confidence, said the high tension wire shocked the Aregbesola death.

    He said: “I had barely walked past the electricity worker when I heard a loud noise and saw him dangling from the pole. It was an unfortunate scene to behold. People rushed down to the ladder to bring the man down from the pole. His body was hanging between the wires.

    “In fact, it took the BEDC officials almost an hour to arrive on the scene after the man had died. His body was brought down from the pole by sympathisers.”

    A source within the company said the Aregbesola was working on the feeder due to some faults detected on the high tension wires that had occasioned the outages in the area.

    Mrs Funke Adeniyi, the estrange wife of the deceased, also confirmed the incident.

    She said her husband was rushed to the Ondo State Specialists Hospital in Akure but was confirmed dead on arrival by doctors.

    She added: “A younger brother to my husband called me that Sapee had an accident and I should meet them at the state hospital.

    “I was confused and rushed down. But when I got to the hospital, I was told he had a shock on the high tension lines and that he had died.

    “Workers in his office told us that a boss sent him a message to work on the high tension cables due to a fault on the poles at the Alagbaka area in Akure.

    “I asked them why they switched on the light when they knew that my husband was working on the pole. So, I am smelling a conspiracy.”

    Mrs Adeniyi added that her husband was employed about four years ago and had cognate experience on the job before his = death.

    Several calls to BEDC management for comments were not answered last night.

  • Mother heartbroken after son is electrocuted

    Mother heartbroken after son is electrocuted

     …while trying to save sister’s cat during Harvey

    A mother has been left devastated after her son was electrocuted in the Texas floods while trying to save his sister’s cat. Andrew Pasek, 25, was wading through water in Houston with childhood friend Sean Stuart Tuesday when they neared a light pole, unaware it was electrified.

    Incredibly, after feeling the electrical current,  Pasek immediately thought of his friend.

    “He told Sean, ‘Don’t touch me, go away! I’m dying,’” his tearful mother, Jodell Pasek, told Inside Edition. “Sean ran across the street as much as he could to get out of that water.”

    Of her son, she added, “I can’t even imagine his selflessness.”

    No one could come to his recue for more than an hour until the power had been switched off in the neighborhood.

    “They could not save him or try and resuscitate him because of the electricity in the water,” his anguished mother said.

    Sadly, Andrew Pasek is not the only one to fall victim to the hidden flood danger.

    Five men and two journalists set out on a rescue mission in a boat, which lost power. When they started drifting towards downed wires that were sparking in the water, they jumped out in a bid to save themselves.

    But two men, Yahir Vizueth, 25, and Jorge Perez, 31, were electrocuted. Two others, Benjamin Vizueth, 31, and Gustavo Rodriguez-Hernandez, 40, are still missing.

    The two journalists with DailyMail.com and another man held onto a tree for hours until they were rescued.

    Vinnie McManus, who works with the fire marshal’s office in New York’s Nassau County on Long Island, says anyone in that situation must be aware of warning signs that there is an electrical current in the water.

    “You may hear some buzzing from electrical equipment,” he said.

    People in the water may also feel a slight tingling and, if so, “you must remove yourself immediately from that situation,” he said.

  • BEDC official ‘electrocuted’ in Ondo

    A middle- aged man believed to be an official of the Ondo Business District of the Benin Electricity Distribution Company (BEDC) has been reportedly electrocuted.

    The incident, it was learnt, occurred at the Government Reserved Area (GRA) at Itanla on the Ondo/Akure highway.

    Eyewitnesses said the deceased came to the area to connect power to a new building in the area.

    His body was hanging from an electrical pole in front of the building.

    His motorcycle was seen under a mango tree as sympathisers discussed the incident.

    BEDC officials were said to have come with some officers from Igba Divisional Police Station to remove the body.

    BEDC Business Manager in Ondo Chris Enuamaka claimed that the victim, who was a casual worker, was on illegal duty in the area.

    Enuamaka said the company would release an official statement after its investigation.

  • Five electrocuted on Valentine’s Day

    Five persons were reportedly electrocuted on Tuesday at Rumuorosi clan in Rumuigbo, Obio/Akpor Local Government of Rives State, after a transformer exploded.

    An eyewitness, Mr. Allwell Michael, said power was cut after the transformer exploded and when it was restored, the voltage was too high.

    He said: “The transformer exploded and they still brought light immediately. The voltage was so high that people rushed to switch off their gadgets. One man was fetching water when the thing happened, he rushed to put off his light but immediately he touched the switch, his white eyes came out and he died there. Five people died in the incident.”

    The Chairman of Rumuorosi Community Development Committee, Comrade Emmanuel Womanda, noted that the incident caused panic.

    Womanda blamed the Port Harcourt Electricity Distribution Company (PHED) for the incident.

    According to him, when youths protested to the office of the electricity firm, the workers fled.

    “I just woke up and saw people running up and down because people were being electrocuted. The current was too high, in fact it was overflowing and it is PHED’s fault.

    “The light killed one shoe cobbler and a couple at Womanda Street. We went to the police to report but when we got to PHED’s office, they all ran away. The police came when we blocked the road to hear us out,” Womanda.

    The management of PHED has condoled with families that lost their loved ones.

    PHED’s Communication Manager Mr. John Onyi who spoke with The Nation after a meeting with stakeholders, described the incident as an accident.

    Onyi said: “We send our heartfelt condolence to families of the victims. It was an accident, not an intentional act. We want the residents to allow us investigate what actually happened. The place was volatile when the incident happened, that was why we could not enter.”

  • Undergraduate, five others electrocuted

    Undergraduate, five others electrocuted

    SIX persons, including a student of the Olabisi Onabanjo University (OOU) were electrocuted in Mushin during the spontaneous celebrations ushering in the New Year last Sunday.
    They were killed after some youths threw firecrackers at a transformer, triggering a spark that severed a high-tension cable from a pole.
    The victims were part of a Muslim congregation participating in a crossover vigil organised by Temidayo Central Mosque on Ogunmokun Street.
    The late Wasiu Adio Apesin, who was a 300-Level Statistics student of OOU in Ago-Iwoye, Ogun State, returned from school on Saturday and went to the mosque for the vigil.
    The Nation gathered that the victims assembled on Adedoja Street, opposite the mosque, to participate in the vigil. The transformer is on Asaoku Street, which is about 500 metres from the mosque. The sparks shot through the high-tension wire to the pole opposite the mosque and severed the cable.
    Four people died on the spot where the cable fell. Two died during the struggle to detach the energised cable from the victims.
    The Nation learnt that seven people were injured. They include 16-year-old Lawal Adeyemo, who resides near the mosque, and a 60-year-old man simply identified as Mr. Olalekan, who is said to be in a coma at Gbagada General Hospital.
    Reliving the incident on his sickbed, Adeyemo, who was injured on his back and leg, described his escape as miraculous.
    He said: “There was no space in the mosque, because it was filled to capacity during the vigil. Some of us, who could not get space, spread our prayer mats on Adedoja Street, which is directly opposite the mosque to participate in the prayers.
    “We were in the middle of the prayers when we suddenly noticed electric sparks from the high-tension cable above. Before I could get up to run away, I was caught up. I felt a loud bang. It was as if a large building had collapsed on us. That was the last thing I knew. I opened my eyes and discovered that I was in the hospital. I don’t know how I escaped from being electrocuted. Everything is still like a dream.”
    An eyewitness, Muritala Salaudeen, told our correspondent that the electric sparks were caused by some youths who threw firecrackers at one another on Asaoku Street.
    Salaudeen said: “Some youths engaged themselves in extreme celebration by throwing firecrackers at one another to mark the beginning of the New Year. Two of them riding on motorcycle came out from nowhere and started throwing the bangers indiscriminately. Some of the fireworks hit the transformer, which triggered the electric sparks.
    “It was like lightning. The cable got severed and fell on the people gathering underneath, killing six of them. We saw about seven people who sustained injuries. When the youths discovered their action had wreaked havoc, they all disappeared.”
    The late Wasiu was buried on Sunday at Agege Cemetery, it was learnt. His father, Alhaji Jamiu looked distraught when The Nation visited the family residence at 23 Baale Street in Ilasamaja, yesterday. Sympathisers were streaming in to condole with the bereaved family.
    The late Wasiu’s mother was inconsolable. She sat helplessly with a group of sympathisers. In tears, she shook her head repeatedly, bemoaning her fate. Later, she was supported to relax on the bed by some women.
    Turning to our reporter, Alhaji Jamiu said: “What do you expect me to say in this situation, Mr. Journalist? See, this is a Muslim family. As a result of that, we have accepted our fate. I am not ready to talk about the incident. I can’t discuss with you; except you have magic wand to wake up the dead. If you can’t do this, please take your leave. I appreciate your concern.”
    The mosque Secretary, Mr. Abdulrazak Idowu, described the incident as regrettable. He dissociated the mosque from the incident, saying a victim was a member of the mosque.
    He said: “It is wrong for anyone to associate the incident with our mosque. Most of the victims could have been Muslims.”

  • Suspected cable thief electrocuted

    Suspected cable thief electrocuted

    A suspected thief was electrocuted last Sunday in Oke Ureje area of Ado Ekiti, the Ekiti State capital, while allegedly stealing cable from a transformer located in the area.

    The area had been plunged into darkness after some unknown persons vandalised the transformer but the residents felt some sense of justice in the wake of electrocution of the suspect.

    Not a few residents gathered to catch a glimpse of the body of the late cable thief before it was later taken to the mortuary.

    The Chairman of the Ajegunle/Ureje Landlord Association, Alhaji Arijoyo Olowoyo, who spoke with reporters, said residents were shocked to see the lifeless body of the suspect.

    He said:  “It was just about 6.20 am today. We saw a ladder but didn’t see anyone on it. We moved closer to the transformer to see who could be working on the transformer and we were shocked to see the body of a strange man by the transformer. It was then we knew that the deceased must have been the thief who was electrocuted while stealing from the power equipment.”

    Another community leader, Prince Ojo Adewale (aka Ogo Oluwa), revealed that the community had been in blackout since December, 2014.

    He said efforts to get government and the Benin Electricity Distribution Company (BEDC) to come to their aid has been futile.

    Adewale said:  “Since December 24, 2014, we haven’t had power in this community because the thieves have vandalised the transformer, carting away vital parts of it. They even pulled down the up-riser connected to it.

    “We have gone to the BEDC and asked them  to repair the transformer but they said we should off-set our huge debts first but these were individual debts of people owing power bills.

    “Now that this has happened, we want the government to assist us and prevent further damage to the power cables of our transformer. We promise to protect the transformer if the government helps us. ”

    BEDC Public Relations Officer, Mr. Kayode Ilori,  explained that the deceased must have started his evil business very early in the morning when there was no power on the up-riser.

    “But unfortunately for him and fortunately for us, power suddenly got to the cables and that must have electrocuted him”, he said.

    The BEDC spokesman, who debunked the speculation that most of those who vandalise power cables are from the power offices, said that residents must be at alert to challenge anyone they see at the transformer posing as an official of their firm and ascertain if indeed he has come from them.

    He promised that provided the people of the community are not owing huge debts of power bills, the damaged transformer would be fixed and power would be restored to the area in a few days’ time.

    Policemen from the Odo-Ado Police Station in the area, who had arrived the scene early enough when informed by the residents, disclosed that a cell phone and some electrical appliances were recovered from the deceased.

    They promised that investigations would be conducted with a view to finding out accomplices of the deceased. They later took the corpse and the ladder away from the scene in their van while the teeming crowd who had thronged the place rained curses on the deceased.

  • Man electrocuted in Kaduna

    An unidentified middle-aged man was electrocuted yesterday morning while allegedly attempting to vandalise cables at Accra Crescent, near LEA Primary School, Unguwar Rimi in Kaduna State.

    The Dan Iyar Unguwar Rimi, Alhaji Muhammad Gidado, who confirmed the incident, said the suspected vandal’s body had been evacuated by the police from Unguwar Rimi Division.

    He urged law enforcement agencies to increase patrol in the area.

    Investigation by our correspondent showed that the deceased tried to steal 150mm four core up-riser cables at the distribution sub-station on Accra Crescent.

    The Head, Corporate Communications, Kaduna Electric, the operator of Kaduna Electricity Distribution Company, Abdulazeez Abdullahi, enjoined customers to be vigilant and report suspicious activities near power installations, especially at night, to the police.

    He warned criminals to desist from vandalising electricity equipment.

  • Man electrocuted in Osogbo

    A father of five living at Ilesa Motor Park area of Osogbo, the Osun State capital, was electrocuted yesterday.

    The victim, simply identified as Majoko, was always helping residents to reconnect their cables whenever officials of the Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) disconnect them from the pole.

    Majoko, sources said, would, sometimes, take permission from PHCN before reconnecting the cables.

    But luck was not on his side yesterday, as PHCN restored light to the area while he was on top of the pole.

    It was gathered that Majoko, a fridge repairer, was invited by residents to connect a cable that was said to be overlapping at Zone C, Road 7, in Ago Ayo.

    Eyewitnesses said the late Mojoko had directed his wife to get him his glove but climbed the pole before she returned.

    His body was brought down by sympathisers, who rushed him to hospital. But he died a few hours after he was rejected by the hospital.

    Confirming the incident, PHCN Osogbo Region, Public Relations Officer, Miss Nike Owoeye, advised people to report every electrical fault to the PHCN.