A man trying to remove tarpaulins laid at the skywalk near the exit of the Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center (VSMMC) hospital along Osmeña Boulevard was electrocuted at past noon Tuesday.
Noli Sisiban Laborte, a resident of Labangon, was trying to remove the Sinulog tarpaulins hung on the skywalk when he accidentally came into contact with a high voltage wire nearby.
He sustained third degree burns on his body and was rushed by a medic to the hospital.
A witness, 39-year-old Jeffrey Geagonia, said he just bought mineral water when he saw Laborte trying to remove the tarpaulins.
He said he heard two loud explosions and saw Laborte trembling and writhing in pain.
Last week two teenagers also suffered burns after they tried to steal wires dangling near the roof of the skywalk in the same spot.
“Ang gigamit man daw niya pagtangtang sa tarp kay alambre, mao to ang nasangit sa wire, karurentehan siya (He allegedly used a barbed wire in taking out the tarp and the wire got entangled to the live wire),” Geagonia said.
He said it took five to 10 minutes before Laborte fell from the skywalk to the concrete ground below headfirst, his clothes burnt to a crisp.
A small trace of blood can be found on the nearby concrete fence of VSMMC.
The Cebu City Emergency Rescue Unit rushed him to the hospital while the area was cordoned by the police.
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