CDEEE takes action after electrocution of mother and child

The Dominican Corporation of State Electrical Companies (CDEEE) has told EdeEste to  cancel the contract with Ingeniería Urbana Venere, the company running a call center for EdeEste. This follows the tragic deaths of a mother and her young child in Villa Consuelo when they were electrocuted by a severed cable in their street.

The damaged cable was reported by residents but CDEEE say the reports were not properly processed by the call center. Apparently the problem was also reported to a repair crew several hours before the accident but, again, no action was taken. CDEEE has also ordered the dismissal of members of this crew.

CDEEE vice-president, Celso Marranzini explained that the distribution companies had been instructed to establish hot lines to allow swift resolution of  faults and dangerous situations. On Wednesday he presented the results of an investigation on this incident to Rubén Jiménez Bichara, the head of EdeEste.

It seems the problem of the broken line was phoned in on the morning of Friday, June 11 by Pedro Antonio Berroa. He spoke to an operator in the call center, Robinson Perez, who assured Berroa that a repair crew would be dispatched. 

At the same time, Francisco Arturo Delgado, another resident, said that at 11:00 am he saw an EdEste brigade working in the area and told them about the live cable in his street. He says he was assured a team would arrive in fifteen minutes.

Sadly, repair crews did not arrive and Angélica Mara Tejeda, 28, and her four month old daughter, Angélica Luz Guante Tejeda, were electrocuted.

The investigation ordered by the CDEEE was headed by Brigadier General of Police, Francisco Abreu Montes de Oca,  Ruben Castillo, auditor and Mirna Lorenzo, coordinator of distribution.. The commission received information from 12 people, including employees and contractors working for EdeEste, residents of Villa Consuelo and a CDEEE telephone operator.

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