JEDDAH, 30 June 2003 — High-voltage cables are a constant menace in the southern Saudi Arabian city of Qunfuda, threatening 70 percent of all local homes, according to one estimate. The danger is growing every day, especially when it rains. Many people have been electrocuted and many others injured.
An official of the electricity company recently admitted that the high-tension overhead cables are dangerous. The company was exploring the possibility of changing the direction of the cables or laying them underground, Al-Madinah newspaper quoted the official as saying.
Studies suggest that children who live near these high-tension wires are more likely to suffer from leukemia than others. According to a study conducted on hundreds of children living close to high-voltage wires, they are more likely to suffer from nervous diseases and blood cancer, specifically those within 50 meters of live high-voltage wires, while others complain of dizziness.
Hadi Al-Jalidi, who lives in Qunfuda, told the paper that high-voltage wires killed his mother while she was asleep on the terrace of her home. “One of these wires snapped and fell on her, burning her to death,” he said.
“The electrical company which supplies power to the area claimed that the cables snapped when a truck hit a pylon. But I believe the company was responsible for the tragedy. They were the ones who strung the wires across my mother’s house,” he said.
“You see the wires going across the majority of homes in the city,” he added.
Mohsen ibn Ali said the cables prevented him from building a second story to his house. “I told the company about the problem, and they told me to pay for 10 pylons so they could change the direction of the cables. How can I pay for their mistakes? They are the ones responsible, not me.
“Now my family and I live in danger because of these high-voltage wires and I am being forced to leave the house. If neither the city officials nor the electricity company are responsible, then who is to blame?”
Abdullah Basandoh tells the story of the death of his friend. “It had been raining, and he went out on his terrace to see if everything was all right. He touched a snapped wire and died instantly. Who put these wires over our houses?” he asked.
Hussein Badawi said his father was paralyzed due to the wires. “He wanted to fix something on the roof. Because these wires are so close overhead, he touched one, and it nearly cost his life,” he said. But when they complained to the electricity company, they insisted his father had been careless. “But clearly, it is they who were careless,” Hussein added.
Muhammad Al-Jalabi called on the electricity company to bury the wires underground. “In big cities they always lay the cables underground. Civic officials in Qunfuda should do the same and move the danger away from our homes. There have been too many accidents here,” he said.
