Pretoria - On the fourth day of Eskom’s Electricity Safety Week, the power utility has reminded South Africans to use electricity safely.
“Eskom wants to remind all South Africans that although electricity is an essential part of life, it can be dangerous if not used correctly,” said the power utility on Thursday.
Eskom is spending time in various parts of the country educating learners and communities about using electricity safely and responsibly.
“Every year, innocent lives are lost and people are seriously injured as a consequence of the unsafe use of electricity. Some of the biggest contributors to these electricity-related incidents are contacts with low-hanging electrical cables and fallen power lines, illegal connections, vandalism, cable theft and substandard wiring,” it said as it commemorated its annual Electricity Week.
People often steal oil from transformers at substations or on the network, which they use to fuel cars or other equipment. Some people even use this transformer oil for cooking, which is a serious health risk as it is a fuel oil and not cooking oil.
People often break open the transformer, which is an act of vandalism, before using a tool to draw the oil.
“This is illegal and will get you into trouble when you are caught. It also damages the equipment because when the oil is drained from the transformer, it will break down as it cannot function without the oil,” said Eskom.
This also results in a risk of electrocution to the person performing the theft and to passers-by, since live electrical equipment gets exposed.
The utility urged community members to stay away from substations and to report any vandalism on 08600 35766.
Eskom’s Electricity Safety Week will run until Sunday. – SAnews.gov.za
