JOHANNESBURG - A City Power metering technician has died after allegedly coming into contact with an illegal electricity connection in Crowns Mine, Johannesburg.
According to the utilities spokesperson Isaac Mangena, the official was on duty during the incident.
"Initial reports indicate that the technician was walking toward a transformer switching station on Planet Avenue when his foot came into contact with an illegally connected aerial bundled conductor cable. The cable sparked, fatally injuring him at the scene and causing an unplanned power interruption in the Crown Mines area," Mangena said.
Mangena said this incident has once again brought to light the continued issues regarding illegal connections, which have a far-reaching impact.
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"Illegal electricity connections are not a victimless crime. Apart from damaging infrastructure and causing repeated outages, they place the lives of residents, children, and employees working to restore electricity at risk."
Mangena said technical work at the site has been suspended, with operations expected to resume once the scene has been cleared and declared safe.
City Power has condemned illegal connections and urged residents to refrain from connecting to electricity illegally or allowing unauthorised individuals to tamper with the network.
"These actions compromise the power grid, delay power restoration and can lead to the loss of life. City Power extends its sincere condolences to the family, colleagues, and loved ones of the deceased employee," Mangena said.