Thane: A 20-year-old college student, Vedant Sawant, died after being electrocuted by a metal ladder inside his Nalasopara residence that became live due to an inverter-related electrical fault on Saturday. His death brought the monsoon-linked electrocution toll across Mumbai Metropolitan Region to six in the past one week.Four of the six deaths were caused by electrical leakages inside private premises, while two occurred after the victims allegedly came into contact with live power distribution wires while wading through waterlogged roads.Saturday’s incident took place when Sawant returned to his Shri Samarth Chawl residence from college in the afternoon. Pelhar police said the ladder leading to the loft inside the house had become live due to an electrical fault involving the inverter. As the ladder was wet because of rainwater, Sawant suffered a fatal electric shock the moment he touched it. He was rushed to Tulinj Hospital, where doctors declared him dead. Police have filed an accidental death report.Two deaths were reported on July 2. A 45-year-old labourer, Noor Salaam Mohsin, got electrocuted at an under-construction building site in Ulwe after he touched the first-floor flat’s kitchen window grille on which an electrical wire was carelessly hung, and Gyan Sagar Mishra (29), a helper working under an electrical supervisor, died after suffering a severe electric shock from a transformer cable in Naigaon East.On July 1, 17-year-old Aliya Chandiwala from Mumbra and Shashi Chakra, 42-year-old mother of two from Dombivli, were electrocuted in separate incidents after coming into contact with live electric current when wading through waterlogged roads near their homes, while a worker in a Bhiwandi warehouse died after accidentally coming into contact with an exposed live wire. The same day, two college girls — Ujwala Wagh (18) and Shubhangi Nalawade (16) — fell unconscious after suffering severe electric shocks from an underground exposed live electrical wire while wading through a waterlogged stretch of the Mumbai carriageway of the Sion-Panvel highway near Nerul flyover.With electrocution cases on the rise, Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Company Limited (MSEDCL) has issued a detailed public safety advisory and appeal for caution during the rainy season.It has advised citizens not to touch damp electrical appliances, switchboards or walls, avoid handling electrical devices with wet hands, and immediately switch off the main power supply if water leakage is noticed near electricity meters. Consumers have also been advised to replace outdated wiring, ensure proper earthing of high-power appliances, use only ISI-certified electrical materials and get old wiring inspected by licensed electricians. For outdoor safety, the utility has appealed to citizens to stay away from snapped or sagging power lines, damaged electricity poles, transformers and open fuse boxes, particularly during heavy rain and flooding.MSEDCL officials said extensive preventive maintenance is carried out before every monsoon, including pruning trees near power lines, tightening loose conductors and repairing vulnerable sections of the network. However, severe weather continues to pose challenges. “Entire trees sometimes collapse during storms or objects may strike overhead power lines due to strong winds, causing wires to snap. Underground cable faults are also difficult to repair when areas remain waterlogged. In such situations, power supply is temporarily disconnected until it is safe for our teams to carry out restoration work,” an official said.M V Deshmukh, former director and fire safety adviser to the Maharashtra government, said public awareness remains the first line of defence. “Residents should avoid walking through waterlogged areas, especially if there are transformers, open junction boxes or damaged electrical cables nearby. Standing water can become energised if it comes into contact with faulty electrical equipment or live wires. Such hazards should be immediately reported to the electricity utility or civic authorities,” he said.Deshmukh also recommended the use of thermal scanners and infrared imaging to detect hidden faults in electrical infrastructure before they result in accidents.Meanwhile, Thane Municipal Corporation said it has inspected more than 50,000 streetlights ahead of the monsoon and repaired 272 defective units that posed potential risks. Civic officials, however, said theft and vandalism of electrical fittings, particularly copper components, continue to create safety hazards despite repeated alerts to the police.A Torrent Power official, whose network serves over 3.2 lakh consumers in Mumbra and adjoining areas, said emergency teams remain on alert throughout the monsoon and power supply is disconnected immediately in severely waterlogged locations to prevent accidents.MSEDCL has appealed to citizens to cooperate whenever electricity supply is temporarily suspended as a precautionary measure during heavy rain or flooding. It has also urged consumers to report snapped wires, fallen poles, transformer fires or any other electrical emergency through its 24-hour toll-free helplines 1912, 19120, 1800-233-3435 and 1800-212-3435, or by giving a missed call from their registered mobile number to 022-50897100 to report power supply disruptions.
