- Good Samaritan called 112 after spotting a sparking loose wire on the road
- They placed a table over the wire to prevent people from crossing it by mistake
- Police and electricians arrived promptly, safely cutting and taping the wire
A good Samaritan has gone viral on social media after their noble deed, which may have saved lives, was questioned by another individual. In a Reddit post titled, "Was I stupid for calling 112 about a sparking wire on the road?", the user revealed that they spotted a loose wire dangling from a pole, 'sparking' whenever vehicles passed it.
"This afternoon, I was riding when I saw a spark about 10m ahead of me as a bike passed. Then, just 5m away, another spark came from near someone's tyre. That's when I realised a loose wire was dangling down from a pole," the user wrote in the r/indiasocial subreddit.
While people around advised to just cut the wire directly from the bottom, the user highlighted that it may have caused a short circuit.
"I didn't know the electricity department's number, so I dialled 112. They said they'd send a PCR. In the meantime, I dragged a table and placed it over the wire so nobody would cross it by mistake."
Fortunately, the PCR arrived quickly, with the police officers calling the electricians, who managed to cut the wire properly and taped it, ensuring that no one was electrocuted. While the user should have been applauded for taking action and ensuring safety in the neighbourhood, an uncle seemingly started going after them, leading to self-doubt.
"An uncle nearby started scolding me for calling the police. I replied: "This wire has been here since yesterday and nobody called. Now when someone finally does, you're scolding him? If someone had gotten shocked here, who would you blame then?" So now I'm genuinely asking - was calling 112 the right thing to do, or should I have handled it differently?" they wrote.
See the viral post here:
Was I stupid for calling 112 about a sparking wire on the road?
byu/theguyindelusion inindiasocial
'You did a good job'
As the post went viral, garnering over 4,600 upvotes and hundreds of comments, social media users assured the individual that their action may have saved lives and that they didn't need to pay heed to the uncle.
"You did a good job by reporting it man. For all you know, you could've saved a life," said one user while another added: "People will rather adapt to walking through a electric field than call for help."
A third commented: "You did the right thing. People keep complaining about police being slow when they really don't raise a complaint and just assume. Also 112 is centralised, they need to do their job."
A fourth said: "That uncle is probably someone who has never contacted an emergency service for anything. These incidents are literally what emergency services exist for. The wire was a threat to someone's safety and if improper action was taken it could have even caused a phase-wide blackout. It could have also resulted in a major fire."
