Cemig warns of five deceptive electrical hazards claiming lives across Brazil

Electricity runs through every corner of modern life so quietly that we stop seeing it as dangerous. The power outlet becomes invisible. The charging cable draped across the bed becomes routine. But Brazil's electrical utility Cemig is sounding an alarm about the gap between what feels safe and what actually is—a gap that is costing lives.

In the first half of 2025, Brazil recorded 1,168 electrical accidents, according to data from the Brazilian Association for Electrical Hazard Awareness. That represents a 7.5 percent jump from the same period in 2024. In Minas Gerais alone, 17 people died from electric shock during those six months. Recent fatal incidents in Bahia and Santa Catarina involved people pulling wet clothes from washing machines still plugged into the wall. These were not industrial accidents or freak occurrences. They happened in homes, during ordinary tasks.

Cemig has identified five everyday practices that most Brazilians consider harmless but that carry genuine risk. The first is removing laundry from a washing machine while it remains connected to power. Wet environments dramatically increase the likelihood of electrocution, especially in homes where the electrical ground is faulty or where the DR safety device—now mandatory in wet areas—has not been installed. The second is the widespread habit of using power strips and adapters to plug multiple appliances into a single outlet. These devices overload the wiring, heat the cables, and create the conditions for short circuits and residential fires. Third is the practice of using a phone or tablet while it charges. A device drawing power and in contact with human skin creates electrocution risk, and the heat generated can ignite nearby fabrics—a sofa, a bed, curtains.

The fourth hazard involves plugging high-demand appliances into circuits not designed to handle them. Showers, microwaves, electric fryers, air conditioners, and space heaters all require adequate electrical infrastructure. When installed in inadequate wiring, they cause excessive heat buildup and fire. The fifth and perhaps most pervasive problem is the presence of aging or unmaintained electrical systems in homes. As households accumulate more devices, old wiring that once sufficed becomes dangerously overloaded. Substandard cables and wires, often of poor quality, compound the risk. Abracopel has identified this deterioration as one of the primary drivers of the rising accident rate.

José Firmo do Carmo Júnior, who oversees health and safety at Cemig, frames prevention not as a single action but as a sustained habit. Regular inspection of home electrical systems, refusal to improvise with adapters and extensions, use of certified equipment, installation of DR devices, and the hiring of qualified professionals for any electrical work—these are the practices that prevent tragedy. "Safety with electrical energy is not something you do once," he said. "It is a habit that saves lives." The message is simple but carries weight: the invisible infrastructure that powers daily life demands constant, careful attention. Neglect it, and the routine becomes lethal.