Exploding cable causes panic in Thohoyandou

At one stage, explosions sounded like massive bombs and there were light flares everywhere.

Fearing for their lives, people scattered in different directions. After realizing that it was an exposed electrical cable, people regrouped and some even started to take video clips of the whole drama with their phones.

The incident happened in Thohoyandou CBD last Wednesday around ĺunchtime, when a Polokwane-based delivery truck that was delivering meat to a local wholesaler touched an exposed electrical cable. Truck driver Elias Thlathla said he was suprised by the explosion while waiting for his turn to offload the meat.

"It sounded like a bomb and there were flames around my truck. When I looked through my window, I could see flames near the diesel tank. The first thing that came to my mind was the safety of the people, the truck and cars that were parked nearby."

He said that he was aware that the diesel tank could catch fire and that it could lead to a disaster. "I then forgot about my own safety and moved the truck away."

People with offices next to the blast blame Eskom, accusing them of negligence. "The situation is bad here. I think it is the third incident here, but some of the the cables are still posing a danger to people. Eskom should do something, or are they waiting for a person to be killed?" asked a businessman who preferred to remain anonymous.

Eskom spokesman in Thohoyandou Mr Nditsheni Munyangane said they were informed about the incident and rushed there. “We immediately fixed the problem and the electricity was restored in no time. We urge community members to report anything unusual, such as exposed cables that are left outside during construction works in town, so that they can be covered and not pose danger to the community," he said.

Date:22 January 2016

By: Elmon Tshikhudo

Elmon Tshikhudo started off as a photographer. He developed an interest in writing and started submitting articles to local as well as national publications. He became part of the Limpopo Mirror family in 2005 and was a permanent part of the news team until 2019.

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