A 24-year-old mother of two was electrocuted around 2 pm yesterday while reconnecting her refrigerator.
Juliet Mohabir of Bush Lot, West Coast Berbice, who would have celebrated her third wedding anniversary today, met her demise after she tried to connect the refrigerator plug while her hands and a part of her clothing were wet.
After receiving the electrical shock she was rushed to the Fort Wellington Hospital where she was pronounced dead on arrival.
Mohabir’s sister-in-law, Premwattie “Delly” Sookdeo said that the fridge was unplugged to be cleaned and that two hours later Juliet, who was washing dishes decided to go and “plug it in.”
She said that they would normally take off the main switch before reconnecting the fridge but Mohabir did not want to go all the way upstairs to do so.
According to Sookdeo, she tried to stop Juliet from connecting the plug saying, “Girl, wait leh me see wah you doing; you can’t fit in the corner there to do it properly, you too fat Leh me plug it in.”
However, Mohabir insisted that she could handle it and seconds later she fell to the ground. Sookdeo said she also started to scream, “Run Delly, me gon dead, run and cut off the main switch.”
Juliet Mohabir with her husband, Looknauth Sookdeo shortly after they were married three years ago.
Mohabir’s mother-in-law, Kuntie “Zeena” Sookdeo said she was standing on the “landing when me hear them screaming and me run down to see what happen.” Kuntie, who was inconsolable when this newspaper visited, said that her daughter told her to take off the main switch but in the haste and her confused state she almost fell before she finally reached the switch.
Meanwhile, Premwattie said she lifted the injured woman out of the kitchen and started to “rub she up with methylated and limacol.”
She also tried to contact the woman’s husband, Looknauth Sookdeo, who works at Solid Gold Jewellery in the village, but his phone rang out. In tears, the husband told this newspaper that just after 2 pm two of his friends gave him the news that his wife got “shock.”
He hurried home on his bicycle and was hoping that it was nothing serious but when he got there he saw his wife lying on the ground. He immediately hired a bus and rushed her to the hospital.
He said he and his wife were looking forward to celebrating their wedding anniversary today but instead he is preparing for her funeral.
Today her parents, Karramchand and Narda, who reside next door, would have also been celebrating their birthdays but they too would be mourning on their special day.
The young mother is survived by her parents, siblings, husband and her daughter, Reshme who will be two years old tomorrow and her son Ganesh, who will celebrate his first birthday in December.
Premwattie and Kuntie lamented that Juliet was a nice and quiet person and said they got along well. They regretted that she met such a tragic end.
This is a tragedy and I empathize with the family. However, the electrical installation in the house should be checked for code conformity and compliance. Electrical appliances like a refrigerator, stove, microwave, washer and dryer, has to be on separate circuits and be GFI. Ground Fault Interruprted breakers.Where the breaker would trip on sensing moisture, and the flow of electricity would be interrupted to the appliance or outlet..
only the older better trained electricians know this, dem young boys would even reverse the live and neutral wires and don’t connect the earth when they wire you house in guyana.
Very sad news, my condolences to the bereaved family, may her soul RIP
I feel sorry for that poor young lady leaving her two small children and husband. Tragic accident. However, whomever wrote the Article in the newspaper needs to learn to write proper English. Wow!!
It has been years since I have read the poems of Robert Burns and Robert Greaves, and the quote above could have been that of Robert Burns instead. Just a little doubt on my mind. Sorry if this point is duplicated.
Red Lion
Oh my gosh,this is so sad it have me all choked up man.
Ms. Mohabir made a terrible mistake and has paid for it dearly, so now is not the time to advertise our mastery in the field of electronics………… please stop condemning her actions.
Have we considered how traumatic this must be on her husband and kids? Wedding anniversaries and birthday celebrations have changed to mornings in the twinkling of an eye………………. gosh this hurts!
I agree with stephen that the media should be used to promote safety.
For some of us, not mixing H2o with electricity is a basic safety precaution, but it may be surprising to know the amount of people who are clueless about these and other dangers.
My condolences to the entire family, and may her soul rest in peace.
My deepest sympathy goes out to the family especially her husband and children. In deeper thinking; i think she was trying to prove to her sister-in-law Delly that she would be able to fit into the corner and that she was not that fat after all. Mabe that comment made her insist in putting the plug in; either way it is very sad and unfortuinate.
Sand Hurst, you were a bit harsh with this lady, but I must say you were MAN enough to apologise.Is there a dept of consumers affairs in GT? If there is such a dept, dont you think that manufacturers should place visible warning signs on these appliances, or GPL with its eratic power suppy should have public service announcement highlighting certain dangers?I know some of us will say “this is common sense “, well, all of us are not electricians or physicists to know that.I am sorry this young man has lost his wife.
I do not believe that the stores that sell these appliances have any time or cares to inform their customers about safety hazards… the want is money!!
instead of you people saying a prayer for the girl’s family, and for her soul to rest in peace, you are are trying to figure out your VOLTS!!
AMEN Pink,,,,you said it all.
Could an electrician explain how this tragic incident actually happened? At least this would make the public aware of some precautions that should be taken to prevent such incidents.
The most important lesson to learn from this tragic incident is that all households, especially those using 220 volts, should check and make sure that the earth wire in the house wiring system is securely connected, not broken anywhere, and is grounded with a pipe into the earth; and that all three wires in any and every plug are connected.
Secondly, there should be no blame game. Almost every person at some time came close to be electrocuted either by accident or “stupidity”. I, personally should have been killed three/ four times already, once by accidentally stepping into water in which there was a submerged live wire (110 volts), and another time cleaning my inground fountain during a thunderstorm, my clothing being all drenched.
Thirdly guys, when a young man (Sandhurst) readily recognizes his error and and immediately apologizes, why do some continue to rub the salt in? To errr in human, to apologize in manly, but to forgive is divine. Reminds me of the time I accidentally bumped into a woman in a store in GT (I think it was she who accidentally bumped into me). I immediately apologized to her. But she still carried on for ten minutes thereafter in some very colorful Guyanese idioms.
My deepest sympathy to the bereaved family.