One killed, two injured as high tension cable falls on building in Calabar

Electricity Pole. PHOTO:csiro.au

Barely 24 hours to the new year, another tragedy occurred living one person dead and two injured as a high tension cable fell on a building at Umo Orok Street in Calabar bringing to three the number of electrocution in the state in 2017. 

The deceased, known as Man of God, was inside his house when the incident happened. An eyewitness who live close to the deceased said around 6:30a.m. there was a spark on the cable, after which power went out. 

“Around 7:30a.m. electricity was restored and the spark continued but the voltage was really high because my stabilizer could not supply light to the fridge. So, I unplugged my refrigerator and plugged it directly. Before we knew it the small transformer near my wife’s shop blew and the cable fell. 

“I was confused whether to enter the house and pick my kids or run to my wife’s shop, but me and another neighbour quickly removed our fuse and our own line went off but other compound didn’t know that it was from the high tension so their building was engulfed by current from the high tension.

“Fire started in some of them destroying property and the houses itself, while Joseph popularly known as Man of God tried to unplugged things he was electrocuted.”

It would be recall that in October, a 100-level student of Mechanical Engineering of the Cross River State University of Technology (CRUTECH) and a nursing mother were killed in similar situation at 14 Adak Uko Street in Calabar. 

And in April same year, about a dozen of people were killed when a high-tension cable fell on a viewing centre while people were in the building, constructed from corrugated iron zinc, to watch Manchester United FC versus Anderlecht FC in the UEFA Europa League match.