How 15-year-old boy was electrocuted in Benue

A 15-year-old boy simply identified as Emmanuel, was on Monday electrocuted at Achussa, a suburb of Makurdi the Benue state capital.

Samuel Olokpo, deceased’s uncle who narrated the incident said in the morning of April 19, 2021, men of the Jos Electricity Distribution Company came to the house when everyone had gone to work and disconnected four households from the supply source.

He said two of the neighbours brought out their bills and were immediately reconnected.

“In the afternoon, one Emeka, a boy of five years, was playing and mistakenly stepped on a naked wire and it shocked him. So, my nephew decided to roll up the wires to avert any further danger and in the process, he was a,” he stated.

The uncle added that a neighbour, Mr Jonathan Adi, said his wife told Emmanuel that electrical appliances in their apartment were still functioning despite the disconnection.

Olokpo stated, “We rushed Emmanuel to the Ushakaa Hospital, where he was pronounced dead, and later deposited his corpse in the Benue State University Teaching Hospital mortuary.

“The JED officials came to the house to condole us. Meanwhile, we have notified our lawyers. Emmanuel was a quiet and level headed boy, who was gifted in handcraft and used to make shoes; that was why we enrolled him in a technical college.”