GENERAL SANTOS CITY (MindaNews / 6 October) — A 36-year-old lineman died after being electrocuted while relocating electric cables beside the Mabuhay Underpass in Barangay Dadiangas North, General Santos City, on Friday morning, October 3.
The victim was identified as Deno Precioso, a native of Antipas, North Cotabato. He was among several linemen performing rewiring of electric posts as part of the ongoing road widening project near the underpass.
In a video published by Brigada News GenSan on October 4, Arnold Cejas, 36, a lineman, said that Precioso was electrocuted just a few minutes after he had climbed the post to work on it.
“Nakuryentehan siya ma’am. Arang kable namon ma’am, maibot didto sang secondary nga para sa balay na mga linya. Tapos arang kable namon ma’am gindapat jud dira sa SOCOTECO ang among ginaubra ma’am,” he said.
(He got electrocuted, ma’am. Our cable, we were connecting it to the secondary line for the household connections. Then our cable had to be placed properly in the SOCOTECO system… That’s what we were working on.)
He said the electrocution occurred when Precioso accidentally came into contact with a live wire while installing cables on the post.
Precioso was rushed to a hospital but was declared dead on arrival.
In the same video, Joy Celeste Alora, Institutional Services Department Manager of SOCOTECO II, confirmed that Precioso was hired through a third-party contractor.
Investigations are still underway to determine whether proper safety protocols were followed and whether the power line had been de-energized during the work.
Videos of the incident and rescue efforts circulated online, drawing attention from residents and netizens.
The electrocution happened amid the ongoing road widening along the Mabuhay-Bulaong Road, a project aimed at expanding lanes and improving traffic flow near the Mabuhay Underpass and Crossing Bulaong Terminal.
As part of the construction, electric posts had to be relocated and rewired, requiring linemen to adjust power lines while maintaining service for nearby households and businesses. (Guia Rebollido / MindaNews)
