3 die of electrocution amid heavy rainfall in Gurugram

Kulwinder Sandhu
Tribune News Service
Gurugram, August 1
Three people reportedly died of electrocution at IFFCO Chowk here on Wednesday night when an uprooted tree struck a live high-tension power cable, causing it to snap and fall into rainwater accumulated on the ground after overnight wind and heavy rain.

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Ravi Kumar, Station House Officer of the DLF police station in Sector 29, received an emergency call about the incident around 10 pm. Upon arriving at the scene, he found three bodies floating in the water. He also noticed that a power cable meant for streetlights was submerged.

The police summoned a team from Dakshin Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam (DHBVN), who disconnected the power supply to the area, allowing the police to safely recover the bodies. Once the rainwater receded, the bodies were taken into custody at 11.30 pm and rushed to a local hospital, where doctors declared them dead on arrival, according to police reports.
The deceased were identified as Waseem (55) from Sangam Vihar, Delhi; Devinder Vajpayee (34) from Unnao, Uttar Pradesh; and Jaipal Yadav (34) from Mahendragarh, Haryana. All three were employed at a private company in the Manesar industrial township. They had been stranded at a Metro station due to heavy rainfall. When the rain subsided, they ventured out onto the roadside to go home. The road was waterlogged, and the electricity cable that had fallen to the ground transmitted current through the accumulated water, electrocuting them as they stood in the dark.
After the postmortem examinations, the bodies were handed over to their families for cremation on Thursday.
Meanwhile, Krishan Singh Yadav, the brother-in-law of Jaipal Yadav, alleged that an underground high-tension wire caused the electrocution. He claimed that the wire was completely submerged and its exposed ends led to a short circuit, allowing current to pass through the water. However, the police are yet to confirm the exact cause of the electrocution, as there was also an electricity pole nearby from which the cable reportedly fell.

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