Student dies by electrocution

 By JAMES APA GUMUNO

A HIGH school student in Western Highlands has died by electrocution.

It is believed that Elijah Michael, a Grade 9 student at Paglum High School, was electrocuted and died on April 29 after he touched a switch with a wet cloth in the male dormitory.

Michael, of Kentaglin village in the Dei district, was buried on May 1.

Manawe Kowa, a policeman and relative of the deceased, said four other male students had received electric shocks in the past from faulty switches in the dormitory.

He said the dormitory was built during the colonial period and no maintenance had been carried out on the building and its electrical wiring.

PNG Power’s Mt Hagen manager Pulman Tirang confirmed receiving a report from the police about the incident.

He said the incident was an isolated case and had nothing to do with the PNG Power as the problem happened within the school premises.

He said if the school administration had reported the matter to his office about the faulty electric switches, Michael’s death could be prevented.

“I am now sending my men to the school to carry out an independent investigation about the incident,” Tirang said.

Attempts to contact the school management for comments on the incident have been unsuccessful.