KOTA KINABALU, MALAYSIA: Scrap metal thieves have struck again, causing another electric high-tension wire pylon to collapse.

However, the incident which occurred on Wednesday night did not cause a blackout because electricity at that stretch had routed through a temporary underground cable.

This is the second such incident in the city in less than two weeks.

Sabah Electricity Sdn Bhd managing director Baharin Din said the 132kV pylon near the Universiti Teknologi Mara Sabah campus at Kuala Menggatal near here gave way at about 8.35pm.

He said the company had discovered that about 60 connecting metal bars on that particular pylon had been stolen during an inspection after the collapse of another transmission tower on April 21 that led to a blackout in 90% of the state.

"After discovering that the connecting bars had gone missing, our maintenance crew immediately went to work to replace them and had so far reinstalled 40 pieces before the collapse occurred," Baharin told reporters at the scene.

He said the theft of the metal bars had rendered the tower unstable and made the repair works more difficult.

"The remaining parts of the tower simply could not hold up the structure and it collapsed," Baharin said, adding that the company would try to replace the RM300,000 structure in eight to 10 weeks along with the pylon that caved in on April 21.

Following the collapse of the first pylon on April 21, the company flew in an emergency restoration system tower that also toppled over, killing a technician as it was being installed on April 29.

Four other technicians were also injured in the mishap.

Baharin said the company's technical staff discovered thefts of metal bars at other pylons and these were being repaired as fast as possible. -The Star, ANN