KIMBERLEY – A 21-year-old man has died following an electrical incident during the vandalism of power infrastructure in Homevale Extension, Kimberley, in the early hours of Tuesday morning, leaving the entire residential area without electricity.
His body was discovered inside a ring main unit (RMU) in Homevale Extension following an investigation into the cause of a power outage that occurred at approximately 01:00 on Tuesday 9 December.
PHOTO: Supplied
The outage was found to have been caused by vandalism of the RMU on the corner of 14th and 19th Street in Homevale Extension. An RMU is a factory-assembled, metal-enclosed set of switchgear used at the load connection points of a ring-type distribution network.
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Thabo Mothibi of the Communications Unit of Sol Plaatje Municipality said the incident is being handled by police in Roodepan. The cause of the 21-year-old’s death is believed to be electrocution.
Mothibi said electricians will be working to restore the power supply to the entire Homevale Extension residential area.
“We urge affected residents to be patient, as the outage might last into or beyond this afternoon. The damage is extensive,” he said.
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