Death Stun From Last Night's Puddle

JAKARTA - Who would have thought, the heavy rain that drenched almost the entire Jakarta area last night left grief. A boy with the initials GR was stung by an electric shock from a cable cut in a puddle of rain remaining in the Penjaringan Flats, North Jakarta.

This afternoon at around 11.30 WIB, GR played soccer with his peers in the field around Blok C of the Penjaringan Flat which was being demolished for revitalization. GR is not a resident of the flat, he only uses the arena to play.

The ball is thrown towards the demolition area and falls in a puddle. There was no thought in the mind of this 7 year old boy that a piece of wire that was exposed to water would endanger his life.

Before he had time to pick up the ball, GR had a seizure when he was hit by the electric shock while on his stomach. The puddle soaked all over the GR's red shirt and brown short calana.

The manager of the Penjaringan Flat, Ahmad Hidayat, along with a number of residents immediately tried to provide first aid to GR.

Through a telephone connection, Ahmad said that initially he pulled GR using bamboo. Unexpectedly, the bamboo he was holding also sent a shock to Ahmad's hand. However, these efforts continue.

"I dragged the child out of the puddle, tied his legs with a hose, raised his feet with his head down so the water came out. At that time the child was still breathing and choked on water," Ahmad explained to VOI, Thursday, December 5.

"Then, he was taken to the hospital and is now dead. I do not know that he died on the way or was in the hospital," he added.

Currently, GR has been lying stiff in the morgue at Atma Jaya Hospital, Penjaringan. Suhaeni, GR's parents can only mourn their son's passing. Ahmad said, Suhaeni did not demand anything from the management of the Penjaringan Flat.

"There are no charges. They only ask for a settlement in a family manner, and at the same time we take care of the body until it is buried in his house," he said.

During this year, Ahmad claimed that the area of the cable cut had never been flooded by the previous rainwater. "This is the first time it is inundated and there is a current."

Not wanting to repeat this unfortunate incident, said Ahmad, the former location of the GR who died had been cleared of dangerous pieces of cable. For the time being, the area was given a police line.