Azeri villagers die from electric shock on phone

At least two people have died and thirteen more were injured in southern Azerbaijan following an electric shock they got through a telephone line.

The incident in the village of Badagamadzhy was caused by an electrical engineer’s mistake, according to the Azeri web site Day.Az.

Some time earlier a high-voltage power line supplying locals with electricity had been severed. The electrician who came to fix it mistakenly joined the electric cable with the telephone line.

As a result, phones in 30 houses started ringing all at the same time, Day.Az reports. Those who took up the receiver got an electric shock. Two people, aged 18 and 62, died.

Another Azeri online edition, Anspress.com, reports the incident differently and puts the death toll at twelve. It says the broken electric line broke fell on the telephone cable, rather than a faulty connection.