Family demands justice after exposed tension wire electrocutes herb trader

The deceased, Fausat Amole, died in her shop located at Shofolahan area of Ijeshatedo, Surulere, Lagos State.

In a report by Punch, the husband of the deceased, Wasiu, blamed the negligence of Eko Electricity Distribution Company (EKEDC) for Fausat's death, adding that if the wires had not been joined, the events that led to the death of his wife would have been averted.

He said, "I am saddened by my wife's death. I was at a client's place in Ikotun when I received a call that my wife got electrocuted. At first, I disregarded the news and put a call through to another person, who confirmed the incident. I immediately left what I was doing and went straight to her shop. When I got there, I was told that she gave up on the way to the Randle General Hospital.

"The wire that fell on my wife’s container was joined with others on the pole and when the wires sparked, they cut where they were joined together. If the EKEDC had used a direct wire instead of joining wires together, my wife would still be alive, because the wire would not cut into two. So, the fault is that of those in charge of electricity supply."

Wasiu also disclosed that the deceased has been buried. He questions how he will take care of the children she left behind.

Responding to the incidence, the Public Relations Officer of EKEDC, Victor Nwihim, said investigation is ongoing on the event that led to Fausat's death.

"We have to do our own investigation and come to our own conclusion before I can talk to you. The wire fell, yes; we know that the wire fell. What happened? Why did it fall? Was there a fault? What caused it? These are the things that need to be determined before we can make a statement.

"So, I am not going to make a statement without getting the facts; that is not how it works. This matter happened on Sunday, but we have been on it since Monday, so by tomorrow (Wednesday) or latest Friday, we should have a report," he said.

A witness said Fausat was electrocuted while she was sleeping inside the container that she was using as a shop for her local herbs business.

The witness, identified as Joy John, said, "The incident happened around noon on Sunday, January 20, 2019. I was inside the shop when I saw the high tension wires sparking and burning on the pole. As they were burning, one of the wires fell and landed on Fausat's container. She was sleeping inside the container when the wire fell on it. She was electrocuted instantly.

"A lady who was also sitting beside Fausat's shop was also electrocuted, but she survived. Some minutes after the wire fell, there was an outage, but the damage had already been done. It was when there was power outage that we were able to rescue the other lady, who had fainted; she started breathing later on and we gave her milk. But it was too late to rescue Fausat."

She said Fausat was rushed to a private hospital where she was rejected but was later rushed to Randle General Hospital where she was pronounced dead,