ONDANGWA – Acting Northern Electricity Distributor (Nored) CEO Toivo Shovaleka has revealed that between June 2024 and now, the company has recorded a total of 13 electrical incidents, including seven fatalities.
“Out of these, six community members were injured,” he stated during a briefing held at Ondangwa in the Oshana region on Tuesday.
The meeting was also attended by Electricity Control Board (ECB) CEO Robert Kahimise.
Shovaleka emphasised that these incidents serve as a painful reminder of the critical responsibility the company has in safety awareness.
“As a company, we will embark on interventions like launching a safety campaign before the end of April 2025; conducting a public education drive in our communities; and encouraging the public and customers to report issues in a timely manner to our call centre or via the SMS line. I also urge you to always ask for the name of the employee you have reported your matter to,” he added.
Engagement with all employees to ensure compliance with health and safety procedures and operating standards has already begun.
“An amnesty programme is being considered for all non-complying, and illegal installations to be reported for rectification, with the issuance of certificates of compliance,” Shovaleka added.
Meanwhile, Kahimise noted that eight people have died over the past four years.
“Five others were hospitalised in 17 incidents involving the electricity supply industry,” he stated.
Kahimise further indicated that the incidents occurred at Nored, NamPower, Cenored, the City of Windhoek, ErongoRed and Kameelboom Power Supply. “Nored accounted for the largest number of cases, 41%, and 63% of the fatalities,” he said.
He emphasised that given the high incident rate in the Nored licence area, the ECB took steps regarding safety. “An independent industry expert was appointed to investigate the 2024 fatality incident involving a Nored employee, and specific directives were issued to Nored management for implementation. Nored implemented 70% of EB’s safety directives,” he continued.
Kahimise urged Nored to complete its investigation into the illegal connection which led to the death of a guest at the guesthouse so as to identify the responsible party.
In addition, he said the power connection must not be restored until the connection is rewired and inspected by Nored to fully comply with the wiring standards, and a certificate of compliance is issued to this effect. “Nored must assess the system controller’s actions to determine whether there was negligence in failing to order the ABC line to be switched off, which resulted in the electrocution of the Nored employee, and take appropriate disciplinary action, if necessary,” he stressed.
Nored employees were then urged to be vigilant and inspect possible illegal connections and extensions, “especially outside townlands from originally-inspected installations when attending to quality-of-service calls, as these illegal connections and extensions pose a safety risk for the public and may lead to fatalities.”
Kahimise likewise advised the northern electricity distributor to monitor, detect and address illegal connections in a timely manner to ensure the safety of consumers.
“Nored must review its internal policies regarding the safety and operations of employees performing work on live electrical infrastructure, ensuring that strict sanctions are implemented against anyone who violates these safety protocols. Any employee who contravenes these safety measures must face serious disciplinary action,” he said.
-fhamalwa@nepc.com.na