A Canton fireman received an electrical shock this afternoon and rushed to the hospital.
First responders have been battling grass fires and downed power lines thanks to the high winds. The fireman got too close to a power line and was injured. He was alive when taken to the hospital. However, his condition is unknown.
7 comments:
I hope he recovers. Someone needs to explain why the power wasn't turned off by Entergy or whoever the provider is, when lines are down, fires are raging, and firefighters are on scene.
It's possible Entergy wasn't on scene yet but firefighters were and were fighting the fire.
This occurred out in the country part of the Canton zip code. Entergy was responding. No one's fault just a accident that could have had a very tragic outcome.
Just because a wire is on the ground does NOT mean it's dead! As a retired professional utility worker I worked an ice storm up north. Working the same neighborhoods for a week. After 7 days it was finally time to restore a cul-de-sac. The entire road was "dead". I was asked to help find the source because the entire line was on the ground in bushes and broken limbs and layers of ice through all their back yards. As I traced the conductor from a distance it went through the side yard of a house off the main road (the house had maintained full power the whole time, out washing their car and playing their stereo) but couldn't see where it went on past. So I went to the main road and found the energized house's fuse and followed it to their back yard expecting a second fuse feeding the cul-de-sac. Then I saw it, the wire went from their transformer pole straight into a frozen treetop then DOWN to ground level, STILL energized after 7 days, kids playing up and down the "dead" cul-de-sac!! Luckily there were no dead people. So NEVER EVER assume a line is dead until you see a red flag and a grounding cable attached. NEVER!
Prayers for him. What a horrible situation that was made worse.
Probably shouldn't have been cutting up a tree with a power line on it until after the power company shows up and clears the scene for safety. Perhaps he'll remember next time.
All downed power lines pose a shock hazard and can shock you even if they do not hum or spark. They can also energize the ground nearby and create a step potential zone hazard. Even dead lines can become re-energized at any time due to automatic re-closers.
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