Association launches campaign to prevent accidents; theft of power cables is the biggest risk of causing deaths
Brazil reduced the number of fatal accidents involving the power grid by almost 8% in 2023, compared to the previous year. Last year, there were 250, while the previous year, there were 270. Even so, the sector saw an increase of 26 cases in the total number of accidents in 2023.
The year ended with 782 records, which in addition to fatal incidents, include serious and minor injuries. The data was presented this Tuesday (2) by the president of Abradee (Brazilian Association of Electric Energy Distributors), Marcos Madureira.
According to the Abradee survey, most accidents are related to construction or building maintenance, live cables in the ground, services carried out on the network, illegal electrical connections, theft of conductors/energy equipment and incidents involving agricultural equipment and machinery.
“More than 50% of these accidents were due to some act of someone who approached the network, that is, most accidents are caused by some interaction. Either by someone who inadvertently touched the network during a construction project, for example, because the main element is the construction or maintenance of civil works; or by some service provided by a company that is also operating in the same area as telecommunications; or simply by acts of someone trying to make contact with the network to steal energy or conductors.”, observed the president of Abradee.
Madureira explains that theft of power cables is one of the risks that can cause deaths. “When someone steals an electrical cable, there is a risk that the cable will fall to the ground and injure someone nearby. In 2023, there were 21 cases involving theft of conductors and theft of equipment, out of a total of 35 accidents related to this type of action. The fatality rate for this action is quite high.“, he said.
Balloon accidents are also a concern, especially if they hit a power plant or unit. “A balloon falling onto a power plant carries a very high risk of setting fire to a larger power plant, causing a short circuit and causing accidents involving general items. Unfortunately, this is a growing problem.”
Campaigns
Madureira credited part of the reduction in fatal accidents to the effect of the regional and national campaigns that the entity develops with its 39 associated distributors.
The president of Abradee announced the 18th edition of the National Safety Campaign for the Prevention of Accidents with the Electrical Grid, which seeks to draw the public’s attention to the importance of prevention and maintaining safe behavior in relation to electricity. The effort is to further reduce the number of accidents and, above all, to save lives.
The slogan for this year’s campaign is Light, prevention, action! Together for our safety with the electrical grid. “It is done in a more playful way, in comparison to cinema, precisely to draw attention to the fact that the protagonist is life, the prevention of life”, declares Madureira.
In this year’s edition, the campaign brings a new point with the alert for the occurrence of extreme weather events like what happened in Rio Grande do Sul, which is still struggling for the recovery of residents and businesses.
“[Os eventos climáticos] have had increasingly greater impacts. We had this now in Rio Grande do Sul, when we managed, together with local distributors, to show the precautions they should take to avoid more serious accidents involving electrical energy.”, he explains.
With information from Brazil Agency
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