House fires are on the rise because of load shedding

Neelam Rahim | neelam@radioislam.co.za

2 min read | 13:35 pm CAT

There has been an increase in home fires, which could be linked to load shedding. The fire threat has emerged from dangerous power surges that can happen when electricity is restored after an outage.

Speaking to Radio Islam International, an investigator at IGNIS Forensic Fire Investigations and Prevention, Thys Steenkamp, said an increase in house fires has been seen since the extended load shedding was introduced.

With the ongoing blackouts, South Africans are urged to be careful. This is the risk of your home being burnt to cinders due to the rise of blackouts. Steenkamp is warning of the increasing number of fires due to load shedding. He has investigated at least 16 homes and businesses in the last month.

According to Steenkamp, around 5 or 10 minutes after the electricity has been restored from Eskom, and house fires start from the DV board.

The preventive measure homeowners can take when there is a power surge is switching off the distribution board. Once the power is restored, DV boards can again be switched on. Steenkamp says this will assist; however, there is no sufficient protection.

Listen below to the interview with Mufti Yusuf Moosaie and Investigator Thys Steenkamp on Radio Islam’s podcast.

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