Man dies in fire after attempting to steal copper

The body is believed to be that of a resident of the Old Harbour Bay community but an autopsy is required to determine its identity with certainty.

At about one o'clock this morning a loud explosion was heard and a large fire broke immediately after a security guard raised an alarm that prowlers had gained entry to the old power plant in Old Harbour Bay that is no longer in use.

It's not the first time persons illegally enter the facility in search of anything worth selling, particularly the lucrative copper metal, Old Harbour News has been reliably informed.

In a statement, the power company said “a man gained illegal access to the premises of the JPS Old Harbour Power Station in St. Catherine, where he attempted to remove copper cables.  The man cut an energized high voltage wire, which resulted in a fire at the station”.

A team of approximately 40 fire-fighters from Old Harbour, Spanish Town, Portmore and May Pen fire departments managed to extinguish the blaze in the vicinity of the Unit 4 Transformer where the burnt body was seen.

“JPS is reminding persons about the dangers of tampering with company equipment and is appealing to persons to desist from carrying out illegal activities on the electricity network,” the company said.