By Watera,
KYENGERA:
Three members of the same family have been declared dead after an electric shock from a cloth drying wire with a link to electricity.
The incident occured in Kasenge Trading Centre, Kyengera Town Council on Thursday January 20, at 7am.
Three people including Asimmwe Babirye, 35, Annet, 24, and Jeremiah Sekalenzi, 5, died on spot.
The Kampala Metropolitan Police Spokesperson ASP Luke Owoyesigyire has said that the electrocution was due to illegal power connections.
“It has been established that the house where the deceased family was renting had no power, so they illegally tapped power from the neighborhood.” Owoyesigyire said
It is alleged that on Thursday morning Annet washed clothes, and hanged them wet on one of the wires that had a link to power connection and electricity shook her.
Her hands remained in contact with the live wire. She made alarm, which attracted her sister Babirye Asiimwe who came out of the house to help her.
Asimmwe touched her sister with bare hands to save her and she was also electrocuted.
The alarms also attracted 5 year old, Sekalenzi who came to help his mother.
he too touched his mother and was also electrocuted. The trio died instantly.
The wire was later disconnected from power by the neighbours.
Police visited the scene of the incident abd the deceased bodies have been conveyed to the city mortuary Mulago for a post mortem.
They cautioned the public against illegal power connections saying that it is a criminal offence.
“Police would like to caution members of the public to avoid illegal power connections. It is a criminal offence to illegally connect your residence to the national grid,” the cautioned.
A hunt for person who illegallyconnected the deceased is ongoing according to police.
Cases of illegal power connections are common in areas of Bwaise, Katanga Mulago, Kibati Kansanga, Kamwokya, Kigowa Ntinda, Namasuba and other suburb areas in the Kampala Metropolitan. These have in most cases caused death and massive destruction of properties.
Owoyesigyire has further revealed that police is working with power distributors to arrest people that have illegal connections in the area and Kampala Metropolitan Area.
