By Nnamdi Okosieme
The Transmission Company of Nigeria TCN has reported the death of a suspected equipment thief at one of its transmission lines in Delta State.
According to a statement by the company, its linesmen found a suspected vandal crushed to death under a collapsed vandalised transmission tower along the 330kV Ughelli-Benin transmission line in Delta State on Saturday,August 8, 2026
The TCN said the incident was discovered during an intensive line patrol carried out by the Delta Sub-Region, Lines Maintenance Department (LMD) of the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN), following the tripping of the line on earth fault on the Ughelli – Benin 330kV Transmission line.
The company said the patrol team traced the fault to Tower 101, which had collapsed. The body of the suspected vandal was found crushed between the tower members noting that further inspection revealed that Tower 101 on the adjacent Ughelli – Sapele 330kV transmission line had also been seriously vandalized. It said the tower was still standing after the incident.
The TCN condemned the act of vandalism and appealed to host communities and the general public to remain vigilant and report any suspicious activities around power installations to security agencies and TCN offices nearest to them.
“The fight against the vandalism of power infrastructure is one that must be inclusive. All hands must be on deck for this fight to be won”, the TCN said in the statement.
This incident is a tragic reminder of the extreme dangers of tampering with power infrastructure. Vandalism not only leads to power outages and damage to national assets, it also endangers lives. Protecting power infrastructure is a civic responsibility. Stop the vandals, or they will stop power for us all.
