Electrocution drama at Lake Biel
Eight people have now been charged
Two women and a dog died in the port of La Neuveville in May 2017. They were electrocuted. Now eight people have to answer for manslaughter in court.
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The accident occurred here at the port of La Neuveville.
Due to the fatal accident in 2017 in the port of La Neuveville on Lake Biel, eight people have to answer in court. Prosecutors accused her of manslaughter. Three of them are also accused of endangering the construction industry, the Bern judiciary announced on Friday. When the trial will take place before the regional court of Moutier is still open.
Two women and a dog fell into the water in the port of La Neuveville on May 15, 2017 and died. They were electrocuted.
The security system didn’t work
According to prosecutors, there had been a power leak caused by a damaged power cable at the port barrier. The current was then channeled into the lake via a pier. The security system did not shut down the system automatically.
According to the prosecutor, the eight defendants are people who installed the affected section of electrical system. On the other hand, the former employees of the municipality were affected. It is said that they have modified the plant’s security system without having taken all the necessary measures beforehand. These are also the people who had checked the electrical system.
Public Prosecutor’s Office: non-compliance with current legislation
The Prosecutor accuses them of not having taken into account the precautionary rules and regulations in force: “With an appropriate check, possible problems with the electrical system or with the expansion carried out in 2016 could have been identified”.
The incident attracted national attention. According to police at the time, several people felt an electric shock when they tried to help the victims. One of the two women managed to pull passersby out of the water alive. She died shortly after in hospital. She was a 53-year-old Dutch woman who lived in the canton of Bern. The other victim was a 24-year-old woman from the canton of Bern. (SDA)
