Three Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) districts in the Eastern Region, namely Koforidua, Suhum and Kyebi, have been battling with transformer thefts, the company has said.
In an interview with the Daily Graphic in Koforidua last Tuesday, the Eastern Regional Communications Officer of ECG, Emmanuel Halm, said apart from stealing the transformers, other installed essential parts of power distribution were also taken away.
He said the thieves had so far stolen two out of six transformers installed and two copper windings.
Mr Halm said a 50 KV transformer, installed for street lights at the Oyoko Roundabout in the Koforidua District, was brought down last week Tuesday in the night by unidentified thieves, who made away with its copper windings.
He said another transformer placed at Pampanso No.1 in the Suhum District was also vandalised together with its copper windings last week Tuesday in the evening.
Transformers
Mr Halm said aside from the two transformers, there had been several attempts to also remove others at Kenkey Factory and Nyamekrom, both within the Koforidua District, where ECG materials were kept.
The thieves, he said, managed to bring the transformers down but were unable to open the tank covers after some residents of the areas reported the outage to the ECG.
“Last week, we received a report from the Kyebi District that one Kofi Asante Mesharlk had been found dead under ECG’s transformer located at Kyebi Amanfrom holding a cutter.
“The case has been reported to the police for investigation.
“It is, however, suspected that he went there with accomplices to steal some parts of the transformer but they abandoned him after he fell and died,” Mr Halm said.
He appealed to residents of the various communities to be on the lookout for strange persons fidgeting with ECG transformers and report them to ECG offices or the police.
Mr Halm indicated that it was only ECG staff that had been authorised to go near its installations, including transformers.
He explained that no unauthorised persons were allowed near ECG installations under any circumstances, due to the danger it could pose to their lives.
“This is why we have fenced our transformers with caution signs around them,” he said.