The number of electrocution cases linked to Kenya Power rose by 10.4 percent to 132 in the year ended June 2026, defying an intensified safety drive by the electricity distributor.
The utility firm recorded 127 public electrocutions alongside five staff fatalities. This marked a rise from the previous year, when there were 115 public electrocutions, five employee fatalities and two contractor fatalities.
Electrocutions had declined from 130 in the year ended June 2023 to 118 in 2024 before falling further to 115 in 2025.
The firm lists electrical injuries and deaths associated with electricity distribution or consumption, and the associated legal, reputational and financial exposures, among its principal risks.
The latest toll comes despite Kenya Power conducting 686 public electrical safety campaigns, up from 648 a year earlier, according to its annual report. The company also carried out 249 safety inspections, held 195 staff safety training and awareness sessions and convened 176 safety committee meetings.
It assessed 320 employees and contractors for competency and authorisation, initiated procurement of 28,534 items of personal protective equipment and revised its safety, health and environment policy.
The utility firm’s interventions have yet to prevent a fresh rise in public electrocutions, even as it identified illegal connections, substandard wiring and encroachment on powerline wayleaves among the leading risks.
‘The company continued to implement its safety programmes, including campaigns, inspections, training and assessments. However, despite these initiatives, the company recorded five staff fatalities and 127 public electrocutions during the year,’ the firm said in its annual report.
The latest annual report does not break down the 127 public electrocutions by cause or indicate how many cases resulted in compensation claims.
Kenya Power has in recent years faced mounting lawsuits as families of people who have been electrocuted seek justice, arguing that the deaths and injuries resulted from the company’s negligence.
Section 166(2) of the Energy Act, 2019, provides for appropriate compensation where a person suffers property damage, financial loss or loss of life due to negligence or avoidable default by an electricity licensee.
‘The licensee shall be liable to pay appropriate compensation to a person if due to failure, poor quality or irregularity of electricity supply, the person incurs damage to his or her property, financial loss, loss of life due to negligence or avoidable default by the licensee,’ the law states.
The law, however, excludes compensation under this provision where a supply failure, poor quality or irregularity is caused by third-party interference, an inevitable accident or force majeure.
Dependants of people killed in electrocution incidents are also entitled to seek damages under the Fatal Accidents Act, while the Law Reform Act provides for claims on behalf of a deceased person’s estate.
The company connected 411,710 new customers to the grid in the year to June 2026, taking the total number of connections to 10.43 million.