Labuan hotel crew electrocuted by fallen lamp post

LABUAN - A hotel crew here died of electrocution after he came into contact with a fallen high-tension lamp post in downtown this morning (May 4).

Labuan police chief Supt. Ahmad Jawila said the deceased was 18-year-old, Ryandeigo Roselee from Sook, Keningau, Sabah.

"The teenager came in contact with the high-tension lamp post while he was walking along a 50-meter covered walkway, and appears to have been thrown onto the walkway,” he said at a press conference here today.

He was found lying unconscious next to the lamp post on the walkway when the ambulance arrived, and pronounced dead at the scene at 12.05am.

Ahmad said the body was found by his brother who felt uneasy after realising the deceased did not return home at his usual time of 11.30pm (night shift).

"The brother decided to look for his brother and found the deceased on the walkway, unconscious,” he said.

Ahmad said a check on the lamp post found that it was still intact with and no exposed live wires outside of the lamp post.

"We have sealed the walkway until the local authorities of Labuan Corporation and Saba Electricity Sdn Bhd (SESB) can confirm that the walkway was safe for pedestrians,” Ahmad said.

Police have advised people to be cautious of such wires while walking near the exposed powerline especially in the foggy weather.

But a local resident said a small tear in the insulation of a live wire inside the lamp post that touched its metal casing is the probable cause of the electric shock.

He said the tear would not be visible unless the junction box is removed.

A junction box houses the connection between underground cables and cables within the lamp post, supplying power to the lamp. - BERNAMA