11-year-old dies of electric shock from clip fan's exposed wire

An 11-year-old girl died of electric shock after coming into contact with an exposed wire from a clip fan at their house in Las Piñas City.

“Electric fan nga raw po ang sanhi doon sa pagkakuryente kasi ‘yung dulo niyan naputol po eh, naputol bali ang dulo,” said Noel Advincula, the victim’s father, in an Unang Balita report by Bam Alegre on Friday.

(An electric fan was reportedly the cause of the electrocution because the wire was cut—the end of the cord was cut.)

“Ngayon, ‘yung kaputol non dumikit sa double deck namin… edi nakadikit itong anak ko naman kasi basa tapos basa na rin ‘yung flooring kasi nga nag-igib siya wala kasi kaming tubig naputulan kami gawa ng sa hirap nga namin,” he added.

(The exposed end touched our double-deck bed frame… and my daughter happened to touch it. She was wet, and the floor was also wet because she had just fetched water since our line was disconnected.)

Due to the strong electric current, the victim’s grandmother and younger sibling were also shocked. According to Advincula, the grandmother initially thought the victim was joking about being shocked and tried to hold her, getting electrocuted as well.

“Sumigaw daw, aray daw. Nakita ng nanay ko nanginginig na, sabi nung nanay ko, ‘Kulot ‘wag kang magbibiro.’ Ang ginawa ng nanay ko, hinawakan siya akala niya nagbibiro lang… E nakuryente na rin siya tapos humawak din yung si baby, nakuryente na rin ‘yung bunso ko, binitawan,” Advincula said.

(She reportedly screamed in pain. My mother saw her shaking and told her, ‘Kulot, don't joke around.’ Thinking she was just kidding, my mother grabbed her and was electrocuted too. Then my youngest child touched her and got shocked as well before letting go.)

Advincula was out driving his tricycle when the incident occurred, and he only saw his child at the hospital, where she was declared dead.

“'Nak, laban ka naman na, huminga ka, sige na, gumalaw ka kahit isa lang.' Ayaw talaga,” Advincula said, recalling his last moments with his daughter at the hospital.

('[Anak], please fight. Please breathe, just move even a little.’ But she really didn't make it.)

“Wala ka pong masabi sa kaniya. Malambing po siya. ‘Yung pagkadarating siya sa terminal… ’pag nakita ako, yayakap na ‘yan sa akin tapos iki-kiss niya ko,” he added.

(You couldn't say anything bad about her; she was very sweet. Whenever she came to the tricycle terminal and saw me, she would hug and kiss me.)

The family is currently struggling to secure burial expenses for the victim.

Burial services

According to Las Piñas local authorities, they cannot provide free burial services because the victim's funeral parlor is in Bacoor, Cavite. However, the family cannot avail of Bacoor’s free burial assistance either, as the father’s registered address is in Las Piñas.

“Botante po siya ng Las Piñas so ini-expect po namin na siya ay makaka-avail ng libreng libing pero ang naging conflict, according to Kuya Noel, na hindi nga raw po ito sa punerarya ng Las Piñas kundi sa Bacoor,” Brgy. Talon Uno, Las Piñas Captain Irene Gallardo said.

(The victim is a registered voter in Las Piñas, so we expected that she could avail of the free burial assistance. However, the conflict arose, according to Kuya Noel, because the funeral parlor selected is not in Las Piñas, but in Bacoor.)

“So paglapit ng Bacoor, ang sabi naman ng Barangay San Nicolas… ang address naman niya ay Las Piñas kaya hindi rin daw po ma-avail ang libreng libing [doon],” she added.

(When they sought help from Bacoor, officials at Barangay San Nicolas said that because his home address is in Las Piñas, they cannot extend the free burial assistance there either.)

Gallardo said she has posted an appeal on social media targeting the local governments of both Las Piñas and Bacoor, hoping that either can grant the victim a free burial.

She reminded the public to exercise caution when using electrical appliances at home.

“Katulad po ng clip fan na ito, which is nakikita po natin ang dami halos lahat po ng kabahayan ay gumagamit po nito at ang mga menor de edad… sila na ‘yung nagpa-plug nito at napakadelikado baka may mga sugat na wire na… baka mamaya undersized po ‘yungmga wires nito so maging… mapagbantay,” Gallardo said.

(Regarding appliances like this clip fan, which we see in almost every household, minors are often the ones plugging them in. This is extremely dangerous, especially if the wires are frayed or damaged, or if the wiring is undersized. We need to stay vigilant.)

GMA News is still attempting to get an official statement from the local government unit of Las Piñas City. —Lyjah Tiffany Bonzo/ VAL, GMA News