OVERHEAD POWER LINES + UNQUALIFIED PERSONS = TRAGEDY

摘要

In January 2011, a tragic incident in San Bernadino, California, motivated us to write the Summer 2011 NETA World Journal column about the dangers of overhead lines. The incident in San Bernardino resulted in the electrocution of three family members: a father (44), a mother (43), and a son (21) who came in contact with a 12 kV overhead line that had fallen in their backyard during a windstorm. From news accounts, it appears that they went into the yard one by one -- initially, to investigate the problem, and then, to help each other out -- which resulted in three fatalities.