Faulty wiring electrocutes Botalaote man
Koketso Kgoboge | Tuesday January 30, 2018 16:09
Superintendent Isaac Mamadi told Mmegi they received an alert that a man was found lying unconscious at his Botalaote homestead. He said they immediately requested for the emergency medical services to accompany the police to the scene.
Upon arrival the deceased was attended to by the medical team before he was taken to Mahalapye District Hospital where he was certified dead on arrival. Mamadi said initial investigations show the man could have suffered electric shock and succumbed to death.
He said the homestead has a number of isolated one-roomed houses and a main house. All the one-roomed houses have their electricity wired to the main house. In the adjacent house to where the deceased was found dead, the room has a wire that cut across the roofing tied to two bricks one on either side that is meant to hold down the roofing. It was discovered the same wire had electricity current running in it.
Mamadi said that his officers figured out that the man received a shock when he touched the wire. “We discovered electricity is running through this wire, it shocked one of my men. We suspect the deceased could have suffered electric shock from this wire,” he said.
He added that they have engaged Botswana Power Corporation (BPC) to help with investigations.
“This practice is very common but electricity is highly dangerous. I plead with the public to desist from wiring houses for themselves. I encourage people to engage professionals to do this job.”