MAKHADO (LOUIS TRICHARDT) – Disregarding a stern warning by the Municipal Manager of the Makhado Municipality, Mr Reuben Rambado, a young man died on October 26, after allegedly tampering with a high voltage electricity line.

The funeral service of Mr Theunis Fourie (21) was held in the Pentecostal Protestant Church in Louis Trichardt on October 30. He was allegedly killed after reconnecting electricity on October 26. Initially, a cloud of mystery surrounded his death. According to a source within the family, it was not certain whether he had died at Soekmekaar or at the Rondebosch smallholdings.

Mr Fourie probably burnt to death when he was shocked by a 22 000 volt current. His tragic death follows a stern warning by Mr Rambado last week that people should not reconnect their electricity supply by themselves. In his warning, Mr Rambado said that several people in and around Makhado had reconnected their own electricity when it was cut off, due to non-payment. He stated that Council would not tolerate it and that electrical meter boxes would be removed from the homes of those people who are caught reconnecting their electricity. They would then again have the expenditure of re-applying for an electricity connection and the installation of a meter box. Perpetrators also stand a chance of being criminally prosecuted.

All these punishments could be meted out to those people who live to tell the story. It is an extremely dangerous practice to tamper with electricity and one that could cost your life.

Mr Ernst Joubert, Acting Electrical Manager of Technical Services of Makhado Municipality, said this week that he had heard of the incident, but that he was also somewhat confused as to where it had happened. He said that they received a report that somebody allegedly tried to reconnect electricity to the local network, but no body was found as evidence of such an attempt gone wrong. On the other hand, he said, there was a similar complaint by Eskom Soekmekaar, where a body was indeed found.

The police at Soekmekaar on Wednesday confirmed the incident, stating that Mr Fourie had indeed been killed after tampering with electricity. He was found on the farm Haasbult, with a metal object in his hand and with burn marks on his body, arms and hands. He died on his way to hospital. The incident happened at about 13:20.

In the light of this recent death, Mr Rambado again emphasized his firm warning to members of the public never to attempt reconnecting their own electricity.