Officials’ negligence: Man dies as MEPCO pole falls

Linesmen were shifting poles without diverting traffic on the road.

MULTAN:

An electricity pole fell here on Wednesday, killing a man and injuring his brother.

The injured man was taken to a hospital, where he was reported to be out of danger.

The family of the deceased staged a protest demonstration against Multan Electric Power Company (MEPCO) accusing them of negligence.

They placed the body on Hasan Parwana Road and burned tyres.

They later set fire to motorcycles of several Mepco officials.

Traffic on the road remained suspended for over four hours as the protesters turned violent.

Police said the incident occurred when some Mepco linesmen were shifting wires and electricity poles due to construction work on Hasan Parwana Road.

The protesters said the Mepco workers had not installed boards diverting traffic and were responsible for the accident.

They said the linesmen had taken off supports from one of the poles, but had left it standing along the road. It fell shortly after they left, hitting two brothers, Najamul Hasan and Ataul Hasan of Mian Channu, who were driving past it.

Najam died on the spot. Ata was taken to the district headquarters hospital.

Najam has worked in Dubai and was visiting his parents for a few weeks. The family said he was to marry in October.

Relatives of the deceased, later joined by residents of the area, protested against what they said was Mepco officials’ negligence.

The protesters stopped some Mepco linesmen working on the road. They snatched their motorcycles and wires they were working with and set them on fire. Three motorcycles were burned.

A police team led by Operations SSP Khurram Shakoor visited the scene. He assured the protesters that officials guilty of negligence would be suspended from service. He said legal action would be taken against those responsible.

The SSP told The Express Tribune that he had sought names of Mepco personnel who were on duty on the road on Wednesday morning. He said Mepco officials had been told to submit the list of names by Thursday morning (today).

Talking to The Express Tribune, Mepco spokesman Jamshaid Niazi said that the incident was a result of negligence.

He said Mepco rules required workers to seal the road before installing electricity poles and wires. They were also required to display signboards telling commuters about diversions, he added.

He said the Mepco would full support the police investigation.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 29^th, 2013.