A 22-year-old man died after allegedly coming in contact with a live electric wire in Bhurkhamunda under Badmal police station limits in Odisha’s Jharsuguda district, while a stationary goods train delayed his friends’ attempt to take him for medical treatment on Thursday evening.
The deceased was identified as Sonu Sahani, a resident of Buromal village. According to police, Sahani had gone to Bhurkhamunda with a group of friends. While relieving himself in the area, he accidentally came in contact with a live wire and suffered a severe electric shock.
His friends immediately attempted to move him to a hospital. However, a stationary goods train blocked a level crossing on their route, preventing them from crossing by road. The group then reportedly tried to carry the injured man through the stationary train to reach medical assistance.
Before they could complete the transfer, the train began moving. The group was forced to remain onboard until the train halted at Brundamal railway station. Sahani was then taken from the station to Jharsuguda District Headquarters Hospital, where doctors declared him dead.
“Sonu came in contact with a live electric wire and sustained a severe shock. An investigation is underway to ascertain circumstances leading to the incident,” Dilip Behera, inspector-in-charge of Badmal police station, said.
Police have registered a case of unnatural death and initiated an investigation into the circumstances leading to the electrocution. The inquiry is expected to establish how the live wire came to be exposed or accessible in the Bhurkhamunda area and the precise sequence of events after the accident.
The incident brings two immediate infrastructure concerns into focus: the safety of electrical installations in areas used by residents and the difficulty of moving critically injured people when a railway crossing is blocked. The account supplied by police does not establish the ownership or condition of the wire, or whether any prior complaint had been made about it.
The delay at the level crossing also affected the emergency movement of the injured man. The report does not indicate whether an ambulance was available at the site or whether an alternative route to the district hospital could have reduced the delay. These details remain part of the circumstances surrounding the death.
Police have not announced a further timeline for the investigation. The next steps will include determining the cause of the exposed live wire and examining the events that led to Sahani’s death.
