Six children at the weekend were reportedly electrocuted and died in Oke-Aigo, Ile-Oluji/Okeigbo Local Government Area of Ondo State.
The four kids were said to have died but two escaped death narrowly when a newly installed power cable fell on a metal container shop.
The children were reportedly on a Easter holiday visit to their aunt and were electrocuted while playing in the shop.
The fifth kid simply identified as Blessing, while narrating how the incident happened, said: “It was when electricity was restored in the area that the cable fell on the shop and as we ran out of the container, the wire trapped our legs and we could not walk again. So, I sat on the plank that was close to me but other children started shaking and vomiting blood.
“I shouted for help and people came to rescue us and we were rushed to the hospital in Ile-Oluji.”
Also, the shop owner, Mrs. Ronke Adebiyi, said that she was not around when the incident happened.
She said she was called by neighbours to inform her about the incident, adding that on getting to the shop she found the six children had been rushed to the General Hospital at Ile-Oluji but four of them died because there was no oxygen.
Meanwhile, the Ondo State Police Command on Monday confirmed the death of four kids through its spokesperson, Mrs. Funmilayo Odunlami.
The state command said the electric cable fell on the metal container shop, where the children were playing.
According to the statement: “Yes we can confirm the death of the four kids. An electric cable fell while they were inside a container. We have commenced investigation into the matter.
“Two of the four victims were siblings who visited their aunt for the Easter holiday in the community. The electric cable fell on the container inside which the children were playing. They were rushed to the hospital, but there was no sufficient oxygen they could use for five of them. Four later gave up the ghost. But the case of the sixth child was not serious as she can walk and talk.
“The remaining two were taken to Trauma Centre in Ondo for treatment. One has been discharged, but the second child has been referred to Obafemi Awolowo University Teaching Hospital Complex (OAUTHC), Ile-Ife for treatment. Two of the victims came for holiday with aunt.”
Also, the senator representing Ondo South, Nicholas Tofowomo, said he would ensure the parents of the victims get justice if the Benin Electricity Distribution Company (BEDC) was found culpable for the tragic incident.
Warning against erecting buildings or shops under high tension cables or any power supply line, he said: “We cannot allow lawlessness to continue in this country. I will pursue justice for the parents if investigations showed culpability of the BEDC.
“Moreover, the government must do its job by not allowing shops or buildings to be erected under power lines. The lives of these precious children would not have been wasted if individuals do their jobs accordingly.”
The Corporate Affairs Manager of the BEDC, Ondo State, Michael Barnabas, said the incident was fatal because the metal container shop was under the high tension electric cable.
He said: “Sadly, we received information about the electrocution of four little children within our network in Ile-Oluji due to an 11kv line that snapped. As a company, we condole with the families of the children because life is very sacred and should not end prematurely this way.
“According to information available to us, the children were in an iron container shop that was directly under an 11kv line that snapped which led to their electrocution when they had contact with the wire. The deaths would have been avoidable if there was nothing within the 11meters right of way statutorily required for such line.
“While we don’t have the powers to relocate people directly living or trading under our electricity lines, we shall be very brutal in disconnecting such customers from the public power supply and ensure they never have access to it again which would probably lead to them relocating voluntarily out of the harm’s way. By this, we believe we can prevent future occurrence of similar sad incidents in future.”
