An electrician has been hospitalised with burns after an explosion occurred in the switchboard he was working on.

The licensed electrical worker was at a Clifton Hill property on Tuesday, 4 July 2023 when he pierced a live cable with his pliers, causing an explosion that left him with burns on his left hand. The electrician was taken to The Alfred hospital and has since been sent home.

Energy Safe Victoria chief executive officer Leanne Hughson says electrical workers must ensure power is turned off before starting electrical work.

“We often investigate matters like this where electricians are not correctly identifying or testing live electrical equipment, placing themselves and others at a greater risk of injury,” Leanne says.

While the electrician had turned off the power to the property via the circuit breakers before starting work, he did not remove the service fuse which would have isolated the electricity supply to the switchboard.

Energy Safe Victoria investigated the death of an electrician at a Pakenham restaurant in October 2021 who was believed to be working on or near live electrical cables.

The energy safety regulator’s Never Work Live campaign reminds all electrical workers to ensure they, isolate the electrical supply before starting electrical work. Energy Safe and Victoria’s electricity distributors have created a guide for the safe removal and reinsertion of service fuses.