FELL ON LIVE WIRES

Sun (Auckland), Volume II, Issue 444, 28 August 1928, Page 13

FELL ON LIVE WIRES

LINESMAN ELECTROCUTED EVIDENCE AT INQUEST Press Association. GISBORNE, Monday. An inquest concerning the death of Roy Gray Bartlett, aged 27* who was electrocuted last Wednesday while working for the Poverty Bay ElectricPower Board, the coroner, Mr. E. C. Levvey, S.M., returned a verdict that deceased accidentally fell from the pole on to the electric wires, and that he ascended the pole for the purpose of effecting certain repairs which, in his opinion, were necessary. Evidence by the foreman showed that deceased and another man were sent to bring a ladder. They were out of sight of the others, who were in a riverbed. After deceased had been gone 10 minutes witness received a report from the men on the other side of the .river that smoke and flames had been seen. Witness went to the scene and saw deceased on top of a pole, lying across the wooden arms. One arm was across one line and the back of his neck was across another line. The current was cut off and the body lowered to the ground. There were six wires on the polo arms, three “live” ones, with a voltage of 6,000, and three “dead” ones.

Deceased had afecended the pole because two “dead” wires were bridged together. Deceased evidently thought they should not be like that, and went up to disconnect them. There was no mistake in tho bridging, but to an inexperienced man it might have looked like a fault. If deceased thought something was wrong it was his duty to fix it, and thus safeguard his mates. If any mistake had been made, all the men working in the riverbed would have been in danger. If deceased believed something was wrong he did the best thing he could have done.