20-Year-Old Briton Electrocuted To Death On Bangla Road, Phuket

[ajarnmark]

i think we are all lucky....the electric situation is on most places very unsafe...for europian matters...

I think its even against the law in europe having electric wires hanging around like here in thailand...

One wire getting loose would be enough to have another dramatic scene like this one mentioned in this topic.

But when i look at all the wires hanging around.....i think...impossible even to do it the right safe way...

But i am sure the new goverment will take care of it.....pffffffff....

It is not the matter of loose electric wire... it was an underground electric outlet which he touched accidentally... RIP :jap:

[overhaul38]

Remember, the normal wiring in Thailand is 220V which is deadly not to mention the frequent high voltage wiring you encounter.

Unfortunately visitors must realize that there's no responsibility or insurance in these instances. You travel at your own risk.

Edited August 26, 2011 by overhaul38

[darreno65]

Yes a lot of the electrical wires in America are above ground.....When visiting America you must have missed the HUGE telephone/electrical poles that the wires are hung from...I'd say a minimum of 20 feet above the ground. I've walked down the street here and ducked under live electrical wires.

I remember that about 10 years ago government decided that all electrical main wires should be underground within 5 years all oiver the country????

I also remember that last yea the then government decided that all main electrical wiring should be underground within 10 years startring with Bangkok/ Has anybody seen any progress?

I know there is one street in Chiang Mai (thae pae road) who has most lines now underground but further????

I remember visiting the United states a couple of years ago most electrical lines where above ground, not as messy as here but still.....

Sorry for the live of this young guy. May he rest in peace. Strenght for his family.

[tigermonkey]

If you get the tingling shock of your computer or another appliance, what you should do is take the plug out of the wall and turn it upside down and plug it in again - reversed polarity

You will then not get the shock again

Sorry, but that is completely wrong! You are only changing the polarity by reversing the plug - reverse polarity is not the problem. Many appliances in Thailand are not double insulated and " leak" live voltage into the framework which should be grounded/earthed - computer power supplies are notorious for such "leakage".

You might perhaps reduce the voltage of the " leak" if reversed polarity is a problem, but you do not eliminate it . The only safe solution is properly grounded/earthed circuits.

Edit for typos

Edited August 26, 2011 by tigermonkey

[Businessman]

Sad indeed. I am sure it was an accident and no one intended to kill using that power point. But it happened and will happen again because of the simple fact of ignorance, greed and corruption. There is ignorance of the law, of the danger, and most so-called electricians. Greed either by the owner to lower costs, or the builder who got paid for a proper job but cut corners to pocket the difference. Corruption by inspectors whose greed drive them to take payoffs to allow safety standards to go unmet for his quest for a new car or higher position in the corruption ladder.

It only takes one of the above to lead to this tragedy. Cutting corners on safety is the norm, not the exception here. And because of ignorance, greed and corruption, it is not about to change any time soon. Not until society becomes altruistic and starts to value others well being as much as ones own will things change. And from what I see with motorcycles and reckless driving, society has not yet even become enlightened regarding personal safety. The is a long road ahead to enlightenment!

[MILT]

So Long we hardly knew yea. RIP

[tigermonkey]

Also that doesnt sound like AC current? Its usually high vold DC current that makes you drop or cant release something when shocked it contracts the muscles. AC was introduced because it makes you jump i you get a shock, jump away and release the wire/plug etc

I respectfully suggest that you increase your knowledge of electricity, and not post more misleading information.

You might start with http://www.mikeholt.com/mojonewsarchive/ET-HTML/HTML/EletricalShockHazard~20020326.htm and look for the phrase " Let Go Threshold"

[laurentbkk]

(electrical) shocking Thailand ......poor guy who thought he could be safe .... well those electrical issues have become the jokes of many TV programs specially all those wires everywhere.

[blabla1]

Once again ,waste of life, RIP, i blame our countries and consulates for not ,warning tourists about the dangers in this and other developing countries, you dare not take things for granted here, they do not function like our society, we come from a so called safe envoiroment,where things are suposedly up to standard and expect the same conditions here, well, THEY'RE NOT!!!! enough of those ignorant comments " if you don't like it go home" that is not the point! this is home for many and the good things out weigh the bad,but the bad exists MORONS, you maybe a safe driver,but they are not, so, if you drive,you pay the price, electricity? my neighbor taps straight into the power line outside his home, write to your embassies and ask them why they don't warn people about the dangers here, the Thais don't give a shit, they function in this environment, that's why the saying mai pen rai is so popular, in actual translation i think it means, it's all good, who gives a fuc_k anyway!!!,

[SanSaiExPat]

i think we are all lucky....the electric situation is on most places very unsafe...for europian matters...

I think its even against the law in europe having electric wires hanging around like here in thailand...

One wire getting loose would be enough to have another dramatic scene like this one mentioned in this topic.

But when i look at all the wires hanging around.....i think...impossible even to do it the right safe way...

But i am sure the new goverment will take care of it.....pffffffff....

Just like the old government. In fact this condition existed under the watch of the entire duration of the old government. Seriously, I don't think safety or the lack thereof has any political boundaries. Why do you interject it in this tragic situation?

[witsawakorn]

"Some of us used to walk barefoot around here, but now we all wear rubber soles all the time," she said.

The Thai logic of enforcing health & safety, wait until it happens before you take precautions !!

RIP young man.

Actually its human logic rather than a Thai thing.Western safety standards are all driven by such logic. Its called learning from our mistakes. I was electrocuted as a kid after I touched an uninsulated live conductor on a British Standard Electrical fitting. Thihe standards have improved since then but I wonder how many people had to die before the problem was sorted?

Witsawakorn, you obviously don't live in Thailand...

Unless you are a caveman in the western world, they do make every effort to prevent such accidents before they happen, here in Thailand they don't. Accidents are meant to happen in Thailand, its merely seen as bad luck and something that will inevitably happen to us. They dont know the meaning of preventing accidents before they happen.

Mods: sorry about the word "they", I dont mean to generalize. Normally I never respond to the "it happens all over the world" type of poster.

Sorry but you obviously are not qualified to talk about safety standards. All of the main safety standards and codes in the West came about after years of people being killed or maimed due to something unforseen going wrong. You say accidents are meant to happen in Thailand Doh! Can you explain then why the last power project that I was involved in here was completed on time with zero lost time accidents (LTIs meaning accidents that cause a worker to be off work for one day or more). It wasn't easy to achieve that of course but it was done. 2.5 million man hours with zero LTIs. Can't get better than that but according to your generalisations " they" don't make any effort to prevent accidents before they happen. Well there is more going on in the world than you can see from the stool in your favourite Bar Beer

[electau]

An RCD installed supplying the socket outlet would have protected the person receiving the shock from cardiac arrest.

Secondly the outlet should have been a weatherproof type.

The owners knew they had a problem and did nothing about it. Typical of the safety culture in Thailand, they most likely had no public liability insurance anyway.

[Pib]

So are they going to fix it!?! Or mai bpen rai?

What a tragic end for the tourist victim.

Sure....plenty of electrical tape and silicone will make it safe again to Thai electrical standards. And while doing the repair they will probably put up a Safety First sign. Unfortunately, life is cheap in Thailand.

[electau]

Some people mentioned that people died from electrocution in swimming pool in Thailand. I read the shower heat accident before, but how do you get electrocuted in swimming pool in Thailand?

Rip to the kid. Lesson learnt: We need to be aware of our surroundings.

By electric current flowing through the body. Current in mA x time in seconds.

Again installing RCDs would have prevented this fatality. Equipotential bonding also minimises the risk of differences in potential through the water within the defined areas of a swimming pool.

Edited August 26, 2011 by electau

[theanimaster]

No offense but... if the outlet was on the floor... how'd he touch it? The details aren't very clear...

[Dellboy218]

It is already a miracle that nobody who tried to help the poor Briton was not killed also from electrocution.

I learned already in primary school that before helping a person, victim of electrocution, one must cut off the power first or use insulated equipment

That will probably be too late unfortunately. If you are wearing any type of footwear, kick them off. Use your boot. I am surprised the did not have any earth leakage breakers fitted (safe T cut). That would have solved the problem.

[chmiroau]

Well, today I went to the ATM at the Family Mart in Nanai at the corner of Soi 2 to check my bank account. I did so many times before, but in nice weather conditions. Today my Flip-Flops were wet, and when touching the first key on the keyboard I had this "exiting nice feeling" of a ungrounded piece of metal connected to a hot lead. I just used my purse to push the cancel-button and left. The next time I won't touch any ATM in the rain.

Um, this sounds kinda weird, but I used to get the same feeling when I plugged my playstation into the tele. Then I realised that the grounding that is needed had been rigged up, but not connected. It looked like it had been done, but it too was a death trap waiting to happen.

So I had to get on the net and find out how it is done, then get an electrician, (Who turned up on his motorbike wearing a motorbike taxi uniform, and of course without any tools to his name. Maybe he was just after money and saw the risk of being electrocuted was worth the 500 we were gunna give him.) to follow instructions from me as to how I wanted it done. Problem was solved.

[FOODLOVER]

The entire Thai attitude to electricity facilities and conduits is disgusting.

It seems that they just don't understand the imminent dangers they put all people in when they allow all of the low hanging and poorly wired infrasctructures.

Even their power plugs and adapters are death traps,... a complete joke but freely sold in any store.

Recently whilst on a trip to Ubon I happened to walk across a walk-over pedestrian bridge across the main city road. On the other side of the bridge was a staircase down that had a chrome steel railing and brushing up directly along side of that railing were power lines which you could have touched with your hand without any stretching!

No value placed on a life here,... and no existence of commonsense or accountability for anything. Makes me want to pewk!

Did you reach out and grab one? Really, you should give it a try. Your attitude is pathetic. Go back to the utopia you came from, and you will not have to be burdened with this and many other problems inherent in living in SEA.

Trust me, the Thais will not miss you for one instant. Bon Voyage!!

Nice baiting attempt, his attitude is realistic.. Yours on the other hand........................................

My attitude is this: I elected to live here, and view myself as a grateful guest. I know there are dangers, things that run against my "common sense." I hope I never reach the bitter, condescending 'superior attitude" I see on this forum. Many here have overstayed their welcome, and now are prisoners who lack the ways and means to go back to perfect little merry old England...(The part not burning in riots)

Yes, i agree with his point that the way wires are strung is pretty amazing / crazy making...It is the attitude I am addressing.

Or better yet instead of closing your eyes to the reality that the people don't give a rats ass about safety you could quit apologizing for this deathly wreckless behaviour. I have personally seen 4 people die here due to criminal negligence had the police decided to show up in a timely manner. One was electrocuted on bali hai pier wile peeing on a live electric wire on the ground. They came and picked up the body but never fixed the wire. It was not until the news reported on this that the wire was fixed. Other involved lighting in a swimming pool. The 2 others happened with in an hour in the same pot hole that had been reported many times and after the first death the police did nothing. The second death within the hour they decided to show up with a one pylon to block the hole. Me and my fellow restauranteurs tied lights up to ensure this would happen no more but the cops did nothing! All this bullshit about go home if you don't like it is crap. Instead of just saying " I elected to live here" crap maybe stand up and say this criminal negligence must change and people held accountable. What kind of ass says if you don"t like the danger go home. Utter apologetic crap in my honest opinion!

[harrycallahan]

I've seen bare copper exposed in bungalows. Take the good with the bad.

[ChoakMyDee]

"Some of us used to walk barefoot around here, but now we all wear rubber soles all the time," she said.

The Thai logic of enforcing health & safety, wait until it happens before you take precautions !!

RIP young man.

Actually its human logic rather than a Thai thing.Western safety standards are all driven by such logic. Its called learning from our mistakes. I was electrocuted as a kid after I touched an uninsulated live conductor on a British Standard Electrical fitting. Thihe standards have improved since then but I wonder how many people had to die before the problem was sorted?

Witsawakorn, you obviously don't live in Thailand...

Unless you are a caveman in the western world, they do make every effort to prevent such accidents before they happen, here in Thailand they don't. Accidents are meant to happen in Thailand, its merely seen as bad luck and something that will inevitably happen to us. They dont know the meaning of preventing accidents before they happen.

Mods: sorry about the word "they", I dont mean to generalize. Normally I never respond to the "it happens all over the world" type of poster.

Sorry but you obviously are not qualified to talk about safety standards. All of the main safety standards and codes in the West came about after years of people being killed or maimed due to something unforseen going wrong. You say accidents are meant to happen in Thailand Doh! Can you explain then why the last power project that I was involved in here was completed on time with zero lost time accidents (LTIs meaning accidents that cause a worker to be off work for one day or more). It wasn't easy to achieve that of course but it was done. 2.5 million man hours with zero LTIs. Can't get better than that but according to your generalisations " they" don't make any effort to prevent accidents before they happen. Well there is more going on in the world than you can see from the stool in your favourite Bar Beer

OK Mr. safety poster boy, care to explain why there are so many ungrounded electrical outlets causing death in Thailand?

[zappalot]

So are they going to fix it!?! Or mai bpen rai?

Are you joking? As written in the article the people there will wear rubber shoes from now on...

Problem fixed...

[chiang mai]

I can't tell from the pictures exactly where the plug socket is located but it may be helpful for some posters to understand that the front of Ocean Plaza is covered by a rigid and permanent awning following renovation works last year. The awning is very large and provides cover for a number of businesses that operate in front of the plaza - it's also worth noting that the outdoor base is raised above street level. Therefore, it's not exactly as though someone decided to fit a power socket in the middle of an open or totally unprotected area, it's also not clear where the water that caused the flooding came from, rain water ingress or someone with a hosepipe/bucket.

Just wanted to add a little balance to the story since a number of people seem to be going off at the deep end on this one, not least of which is someone blaming the deceased for being up and awake at 06:00, quite amazing really.

[kevbap]

I've seen bare copper exposed in bungalows. Take the good with the bad.

was he taking bribes?

[electau]

The fatality occured due to failure of insulation due to the ingress of water in the fitting causing the touch potential to rise to a hazardous value adjacent to the fitting.

There will be no investigation into the death, there will be no autopsy and the death will be put down most probably to , to use the western term, " death by misadventure"

The electric shock, mA x time in seconds would have caused cardiac arrest in the victim.

[Gonsalviz]

I mean how could an electricity socket covered in water be so dangerous?

Freaking idiots.

Thai wiring leaves something to be desired.

[x5david]

Very tragic...RIP. Hoping something will be done to fix the outlet, but not holding my breath.

[Boater]

still to make the UK news, which i think it will .........

but how many others have died in similar ways? , in samui during the floods in April, 2 or 3 people died in the same way, but as Thai, not much reporting...

this place is a health and safty nightmare sometimes,

But always during the flooding in Samui, i never go out

[Cowboyshoe]

Terrible tragedy - though as many have stated, not unexpected due to the commonality of shoddy workmanship and almost universal disregard for the dangers of electricity you see daily in Thailand.

Note to the news editor: 'Electrocuted to death' is redundant. Electrocuted literally means killed by electricity. The non-lethal alternative is 'electrified' or 'shocked'.

[witsawakorn]

OK Mr. safety poster boy, care to explain why there are so many ungrounded electrical outlets causing death in Thailand?

Probably because the buildings' grounding system hasn't been connected to a ground mat or rod and there is no ELCB (for Brits) or GFCI (for Americans) ( aka safety breaker) installed.Anyone who knows that the grounding system in their house/condo isn't correct and doesn't get it fixed is putting their family at risk. Just whining about it on TV doesn't actually achieve anything. Or do we expect Central Government to over regulate and police every thing such that we don't have to do any thinking or take responsibility for our own lifes?

[kjhbigv]

"and view myself as a grateful guest'....I would at least expect not to get killed by an act of negligent wiring in one of Thailand's major tourist holiday resorts.