A young man was last Wednesday electrocuted at Inchaban in the Shama District, when he attempted stealing high tension overhead electrical cables carrying 11,000 volts.
The alleged thief was found dead with a huge cutter beside him in the bush behind the Inchaban Police Checkpoint.
When the news team got to the scene of the incident, the young man, who is yet to be identified, had placed a long ladder against one of the poles and successfully cut the cable.
According to the engineers, it was clear that after cutting the cable, the thief was not able to collect them before the system restored itself, thereby killing him instantly.
According to the Regional Engineer of the company, Mr Dan Acquah-Larbi, customers in the affected areas had been in darkness for about a day.
He said the activities of these cable thieves did not only affect the company financially, but also slowed the wheels of industry and created social discomfort.
Explaining how the thieves operate, he said they faulted the lines by throwing wire on the overhead cables to form ‘bridge’.
“If that happens, the system will trip and the lines go off to protect itself”. He said by the time the system could be restored, the thieves would have cut the cables and carried them away.
He said in the case of the young man who was electrocuted, it was likely he was not able to cut the cables before the system restored itself, thereby killing him instantly.
He said considering the implements and weight of the ladder that was used, it was clear that there were others with him and that they might have bolted after realising that their colleague was dead.
Mr Acquah-Larbi urged members of the public to volunteer information on the operations of such people.
The regional engineer reminded the public that the lines carried more than 11,000 volts and should not be tampered with.
The body of the deceased has been deposited at the Effia-Nkwanta Regional Hospital morgue pending identification and autopsy.
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