Two teens electrocuted after tree collapse snaps power line in southwest Delhi's RK Puram

New Delhi, Jun 15 (PTI) Two teenagers died of electrocution in southwest Delhi's RK Puram area early Sunday after a tree, weakened by heavy rain and strong winds, fell on a power line, police said.

The incident occurred when Arvind (17) and Bharat (16), natives of Madhubani in Bihar, were sleeping at a roadside eatery in Sector 1 in RK Puram where they worked, they said Earlier Delhi Police had identified one of the deceased as Ravinder and said that the two were aged 30 and 25.

Police received a PCR call around 4.30 am regarding a tree collapse and electrocution of two people near the fire station on Vivekanand Marg.

The caller, Sunil (45), who owns the dhaba where the victims worked, informed the police that both the teens were sleeping outside the kiosk when the incident occurred.

Due to the storm and rain, a large tree fell on the eatery, snapping an overhead electric wire. As a result the area around the kisosk had electricity running through it and the two workers, along with a stray dog, were electrocuted.

Emergency teams including police, fire brigade personnel, and a BSES crew reached the spot for rescue operations.

"The two were rushed to AIIMS Trauma Centre, where doctors declared them brought dead," police said, adding that the scene was examined by a forensic team and a BSES inspector also visited to secure the site. Further investigation is underway, they added.

Meanwhile, Delhi Fire Service said they received a call about a fallen tree. Upon arriving at the scene, they found that a live wire had fallen on the victims, resulting in their deaths.

A fire tender was sent to the spot immediately to rescue others and the matter was also informed to the police for further investigation.

However, no immediate reaction was received from the BSES.

The kiosk owner Sunil Kumar blamed the electricity department for not taking action earlier even after many complaints about dangling wires.

He said, "I run a small food dhaba here. There was a huge storm last night. We had complained many times to the electricity department to check the wires and fix them. The power wires were in bad shape. Because of the storm, a tree fell and due to broken wires, two lives were lost." "My both workers -- Arvind and Bharat died on the spot, along with a stray dog. We were all sleeping right here on the footpath last night," he added.

He further demanded strict action against the culprit and proper compensation for the family members of the victim.

A nearby resident Anup said that the tree could not handle the force of the storm and fell.

"If it had happened in the morning, it would have been a disaster. A lot of cars stop here and it's a busy road. It is really sad that two people lost their lives. We will help their family members," Anup added.

Another resident, Ansh from RK Puram said that the electricity wires were attached to the tree, so when it fell, all the wires also fell on people sleeping under the tree.

"It is such a tragic incident. Now both roads are blocked and the clearing work is going on," he said.

Police said the process of informing the family members of the victim is underway and their bodies will be handed over to them after postmortem. PTI BM OZ OZ