MAN ELECTROCUTED.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 21265, 20 February 1931, Page 7

MAN ELECTROCUTED.

CURRENT FROM ELECTRIC IRON. VERDICT OF ACCIDENTAL DEATH. An inquest into the circumstances surrounding the 4eath of Sidney Harrington Findlater, a married man, 35 years of age, which occurred at his residence 66 Bradshaw street, on Wednesday night, when he received a shock from an electric iron, was held yesterday afternoon before the coroner, Mr J. E. Bartholomew, S.M. Mr H. E. Barrowclough appeared for the City Corporation, and Sergeant M'Entee represented the police. Charles M'Ewen Fisher, residing at 64 Bradshaw street, gave formal evidence of identification. Witness had been with the deceased up till within* about 20 minutes of the occurrence. The deceased stated tllat he intended insulating the electric iron as his wife had received a shock from it the previous day. About 15 minutes after he had left, witness was called in to the deceased’s home again, where he found the deceased lying on the floor. He lifted him up and spoke to him, butreceived no answer. Shortly afterwards the deceased stopped breathing, and witness laid him on the floor. In the meantime Dr Allan had been summoned. Dr R. Findlay Allan stated that at 10.10 p.m. on Wednesday he received a call to 66 Bradshaw street. There ha saw a man, apparently dead, lying on the floor. He immediately commenced restorative measures and injected a heart stimulant into the arm. After he had been working for about 20 minutes Dr Harty arrived, and in turn they continued until 11 p.m., but without avail. Witness then advised the South Dunedin police that a man had been electrocuted. There was a superficial laceration, not bleeding, on the left forearm, above -the wrist joint. This laceration v.could have been caused by an electric burn. 6 The iron was lying by the deceased’s right side, when witness first saw him. In witness’s opinion death was due to shock following the discharge of an electric current through the deceased’s body. Mary Findlater, the wife of the deceased,* stated that recently, when using the electric iron, she had received a slight shock on different occasions. She told her husband, and he said he would mend it. On Wednesday night at about 9.45, her husband commenced to fix the iron. He did not have the cord attached to the iron or the plug when he was making the adjustments, but later connected up the iron to try it. He switched on the current and picked up the iron in his right hand, wet his left fingers, and touched the iron. Witness, was sitting at a sewing machine at the other end of the table. The deceased then fell over a chair which was beside the table, saying to witness at the same time: “ Why did you not switch it off? ” He did not speak again, and witness noticed him change colour. She called a neighbour, and Dr Allan was sent for. Up to that time her husband had been in good health. Witness had had the iron for about 18 months, and it was only very recently that she had received shocks from it.—To Mr Barrowclough witness stated that she had received the shocks from the wire spring at the end of the cord.

Arthur Perrot Mackie, engineer in charge of the Electric Power and Lighting Department’s test works, stated that he had examined the three-pin plug in the kitchen wall. All connections to the plug were in order. On testing the iron he found that at the present time no fault existed, but it was possible that the iron, in falling, \cleared the fault. The third pin on the plug was used only when another earth was present for additional safety. Tests made before the coroner showed that the earth wire was intact, and the iron properly insulated. The spring support was the only metal insulated from the frame of the iron. Examination showed that the live conductor was slightly bare just at the point where the earth wire came out through the spring, and that would account for the escape of the current. The earth wire in this case was fixed in an unusual manner, the usual way being to bring the wire through the inside of the iron plug. If this had been done the accident would not have happened, as there would have been much more protection for the live conductor. \Vitness was of opinion that the accident was caused by the deceased holding the iron in one hand and touching the base plate with the other, thereby completing the circuit, the current passing through the vital organs of the body. The coroner stated that as this was a matter of considerable public interest it might be advisable for the department to make public some information with regard to the use of electric irons, as an accident of this nature would undoubtedly lead to considerable uneasiness amongst users of electric irons. His verdict would be that the deceased diedthrough shock due to the accidental discharge through his body of current from an electric iron.