Shoddy wiring major cause of short-circuit fires

LAHORE: Poor maintenance and carelessness in electricity usage are among the major causes behind fire incidents in the provincial metropolis, The Express Tribune has learnt.

At least 54% of fire cases resulted due to a short circuit. As many as 3,107 incidents were registered during the current year by the Punjab Emergency Service (PES). These incidents claimed 11 lives and left 168 injured.

As many as 1,693 cases of fire resulted due to short circuits. The incidents have also cost Rs1.224 billion in estimated losses, the data revealed.

At least 575 incidents occurred in commercial areas, 845 in residential zones and 1,687 in other places.

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Carelessness, leading to short circuits, was cited as the main reason as 338 recent cases have been recorded.

Gas leakage caused 105 cases and LPG cylinder blasts led to four incidents of fire. Three incidents were a result because of a candle fire and 11 were caused by kitchen activity.

However, authorities failed the reason behind 74 cases.

Meanwhile, electrocution increased manifold during the rainy season. These incidents not only cause a nuisance for common users, but also those in the professional sphere.

Every other day, the death or injury of a lineman is reported in the city. The occurrences of injury or death due to electrocution, after coming in contact electricity poles, have also been rampant. A recent incident in Nishter Colony made headlines after its CCTV footage went viral.

An official shared with The Express Tribune that outdated transmission lines were behind the surge in the number of short circuit cases. He added that these lines flared up or disrupted the flow of electric current inside residential or commercial buildings where such cases were mostly reported.

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He was of the view that due to random loops of cables around electricity poles, transformers were also vulnerable points for short circuit.

A Lahore Electric Supply Company (LESCO) officer Maqsood Hamdani, while talking to The Express Tribune, said overload electricity wires, due to a technical fault, were also a cause behind short circuits.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 27^th, 2019.