Between life and luck, choose to live safely
In a country where electricity still claims lives daily, Brazil's association of power distributors has launched its 17th national safety campaign, moved earlier than usual to reach families during school holidays. The 270 fatal accidents recorded in 2022 — out of 756 total — represent a modest decline, yet the goal remains absolute: zero deaths. Behind the statistics lies a cultural challenge as much as a technical one, as the campaign seeks to dismantle the quiet fatalism that treats survival as proof of safety.
- Brazil recorded 270 electrical deaths in 2022 — a decline from the year before, but one that Abradee's president called plainly insufficient against a target of zero fatalities.
- The campaign was deliberately moved from August to July, racing to reach children and families before school holidays dispersed them beyond the reach of public messaging.
- Three danger zones drive the crisis: careless construction work near live wires, theft of electrical equipment from the grid, and illegal connections — known as 'gato' — made out of economic desperation.
- The deepest obstacle is cultural: the belief that past luck equals future safety, a folk logic the campaign's slogan directly confronts — 'Between life and luck, choose to live safely.'
- The 2018 destruction of Rio's National Museum by an electrical fire born of improvised wiring stands as a warning that neglected infrastructure can erase not just lives, but irreplaceable human heritage.
Brazil's 270 electrical fatalities in 2022 — part of 756 total accidents recorded that year — moved the country's major power distributors to act earlier than usual. Abradee, representing 39 regional utilities, launched its 17th National Electrical Safety Campaign in July rather than August, deliberately targeting the school holiday period when children face greater exposure to electrical hazards.
The numbers showed modest progress: 35 fewer deaths and 80 fewer total incidents than in 2021. But Abradee president Marcos Madureira was unsparing in his assessment. A reduction, he said, is not the goal — elimination is. 'Our intention is truly to eliminate the number of accidents, especially fatal ones,' he told Brazil's national news agency, framing public awareness as the essential instrument.
The campaign focuses on three distinct risk areas: construction and maintenance workers who contact live wires through error or inattention; thieves who strip electrical conductors and equipment from the grid; and those who make illegal connections — the practice called 'gato' — to avoid metered payment. Each failure point reflects a different social reality: negligence, crime, and poverty.
The harder battle, Madureira suggested, is cultural. The campaign targets a dangerous folk wisdom — the conviction that surviving past risks proves future safety. These are the phrases, he implied, that quietly kill. The campaign's slogan frames the choice starkly: 'Wake up! Between life and luck, choose to live safely.'
The consequences of ignoring electrical infrastructure were made catastrophically visible in 2018, when Rio de Janeiro's National Museum burned to the ground. Investigators traced the fire to an improvised electrical modification and absent grounding in an air-conditioning unit — a reminder that mishandled electricity destroys not only lives, but the irreplaceable memory of a civilization.
Brazil's electrical distributors recorded 270 deaths from electrical accidents in 2022—a grim tally that prompted the country's major power companies to move up their annual safety campaign by several weeks. The Associação Brasileira de Distribuidores de Energia Elétrica, or Abradee, which represents 39 regional utilities, launched the 17th iteration of its National Electrical Safety Campaign in July rather than waiting for August, when it traditionally runs. The shift was deliberate: July brings school holidays, when children are more exposed to electrical hazards, and the association wanted to maximize the reach of its message before families scattered.
The numbers tell a story of persistent danger. In 2022, utilities recorded 756 electrical accidents overall, of which 270 were fatal. While this represented a decline from 2021—35 fewer deaths and 80 fewer total incidents—Marcos Madureira, president of Abradee, made clear the improvement was not enough. Speaking to Brazil's national news agency, he described the reduction as insufficient against the association's actual goal: zero fatalities. "Our intention is truly to eliminate the number of accidents, especially fatal ones," he said, "and as the population becomes aware of the risks and conscious of the care required around electrical infrastructure, it will contribute to greater reduction."
The campaign targets three specific danger zones. Construction and building maintenance work accounts for a significant share of accidents, often occurring when workers touch live wires through carelessness or error. Theft of electrical conductors and equipment from the grid creates another category of risk. A third involves illegal connections—the practice known colloquially as "gato," or cat—where people tap directly into the electrical system to bypass meters and payment. Each represents a different failure point: negligence, crime, and desperation.
Madureira emphasized that the campaign would be tailored to regional concerns, with messaging designed to reach specific populations in different areas. The core challenge, he suggested, is cultural. The association wants to dismantle dangerous folk wisdom—the belief that "I've always done it and nothing happened," or "It's just pulling a wire," or "It's never happened to me." These are the phrases that kill. The campaign's slogan captures the stakes: "Wake up! Between life and luck, choose to live safely."
The association treats electrical safety as a matter of institutional priority, and the utilities have framed the campaign as a tool for broad public education. Madureira stressed that electrical accidents carry grave consequences—serious injury and death—and that the infrastructure companies see prevention as a shared responsibility with the communities they serve. The message is straightforward: awareness saves lives.
The stakes of this work became visible in 2018, when a massive fire destroyed Rio de Janeiro's National Museum. Investigation revealed the fire began with an electrical short circuit in an air-conditioning unit, caused by an improvised electrical modification and the absence of proper grounding. The disaster was traced to inadequate maintenance and insufficient investment in electrical safety. It was a catastrophic reminder of what happens when electrical infrastructure is neglected or mishandled—not just individual deaths, but the loss of irreplaceable cultural heritage.
Citações Notáveis
Our intention is truly to eliminate the number of accidents, especially fatal ones, and as the population becomes aware of the risks and conscious of the care required around electrical infrastructure, it will contribute to greater reduction.— Marcos Madureira, president of Abradee
The association wants to dismantle dangerous folk wisdom—the belief that 'I've always done it and nothing happened' or 'It's just pulling a wire.'— Marcos Madureira, on the campaign's cultural challenge
A Conversa do Hearth Outra perspectiva sobre a história
Why move the campaign up to July? That seems like an odd choice.
School holidays. In July, kids are out of school and more likely to be around electrical hazards—playing near power lines, touching things they shouldn't. The association wanted to reach families before that exposure happened.
And the numbers from 2022—270 deaths. Is that better or worse than before?
It's better than 2021, but the association doesn't see it as good enough. They dropped 35 deaths year-over-year, but they're aiming for zero. When you're talking about preventable deaths, incremental improvement feels like failure.
What are people actually doing that kills them?
Three main things. Construction workers touching live wires by accident or carelessness during building work. People stealing copper and equipment from the electrical grid. And illegal connections—people tapping directly into the system to avoid paying for electricity.
So it's a mix of accidents and desperation.
Exactly. Some of it is negligence, some is crime, some is people with no other way to get power. But the campaign treats them all as preventable if people understand the risk.
The museum fire in 2018—how does that fit in?
It's the proof of concept. An improvised electrical fix in an air-conditioning unit, no proper grounding, and it burned down one of Brazil's most important museums. It shows what happens when electrical infrastructure is ignored or patched together instead of maintained properly.