# They could have been killed - but lived!



## Lawrence Wallace (Jan 2, 2008)

My wife and I were watching TV. When the lights flashed, and then we lost power altogether.
I went outside and looked down the street and saw an aluminum ladder lying on the sidewalk with three men
looking at.
I grabbed my camera and went down the street to see what had happened.

The three men were getting ready to work on the roof of a house at the end of the street.
with two men holding the ladder, setting it up right with the third man pulling the nylon rope to
extend a ladder.
The ladder was raised to its full length, and as they started to turn the ladder to lay it
on the roof, they lost control of the extended ladder in it came in contact with a
4600 V primary line on a cross arm at the top of the pole, burning it in half at the same time. 
Coming in contact with the 110 220 V service cable.





















The first was picture shows the bottom of a ladder with electricity went aground.
The second picture shows the top of the ladder that came in contact with high-voltage line. 
The third picture shows the middle of the ladder that came in contact with the 120-220 service cable.
The fourth picture shows the service cable with one of the wires burnt through.

As unbelievable as it may seem neither of the two men holding the ladder were burnt or even
Shocked, while holding a ladder.
There were electrical burn marks on the sidewalk, where the electricity from the ladder went to ground.
Someone or something, must have been watching over them.

The 4600 V line burned through with one section fallen on the sidewalk and 8 foot section of wire was 
hanging down from the cross arm.
By the time I got to the scene there were adults and children walking around the downed wire.
I told them to go to the far side of the street and stay there.
From what I was standing. I could see the cutout (fuse) was hanging down and then there was little chance that the line
was energized. But better to keep people away from it and then be sorry.

The breaks were repaired in three hours. Week end was a while getting a crew?

Just be careful with ladders. You may not be as lucky as they were.


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## Torby (Jan 2, 2008)

Then they went home to change their pants...


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## bottino (Feb 7, 2008)

Good thing there wasn't a football game on. That would of not been cool.
P


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## xo18thfa (Jan 2, 2008)

That's why Dad only used wood ladders. As heavy as that darn thing was.


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## altterrain (Jan 2, 2008)

We had a contractor for the local power company fry himself taking down a portable lighting unit at a repair site. He was not as lucky as those clowns. Its easy to do when you get sloppy and you stop paying attention. 

-Brian


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## Spule 4 (Jan 2, 2008)

I watched a "before and after" (started working when I first drove by, big problems on my return) with a similar sutation with some guys with a Sunbelt rental bucket lift. 

You gotta watch overhead, we just had a worker fatality here in TN this week when someone ran a drill rig into some power lines, not the first time for this either.


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## Mik (Jan 2, 2008)

God looks after drunks, fools and children.....


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## Ray Dunakin (Jan 6, 2008)

A few years ago a news crew in LA raised the microwave antenna on their truck while it was parked under high voltage lines. The result was not pretty.


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## JPCaputo (Jul 26, 2009)

The lady inside the truck grabbed hold and stepped down, making herself the path of least resistance. If she had jumped away from the truck without touching both the truck and ground at the same time, she would not have been the short path.


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## hawkfanjohn (Nov 17, 2009)

Why I used fiberglass ladders! That plus they were stiffer and didn't twist!


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