This article was posted 11/30/-0001 and is most likely outdated.

Selected Electrical Incidents and Occurrences
 

 
Topic -Safety
Subject - Selected Electrical Incidents and Occurrences

October 10, 2005 

| Ask a Question |  Code Graphic Code Quiz Free Stuff Instructors | Feedback
Online Training Products | Seminars | SubscribeUnsubscribe |
Change Email Address |
  Web Page Version [Printer-Friendly]    

Selected Electrical Incidents and Occurrences

Second Quarter - April to June, 2005

Date &            Program      Location     Accident Description

MIS ID #

 

 

Fatalities:

 

April 9th                  Construction         Mississauga        Certified linesman was removing the temporary grounds from

1071796                                                                                  the overhead conductors.  Worker removed ground connection

                                                                                                while other end was still connected to a phase conductor.

Worker was not wearing rubber gloves, was not using a hot

stick, climbed up onto the support structure to reach

connection point.  Calculations done as part of investigation

showed that about 400 mA was available to flow to ground

through the bonding cable.  At the time of the fatality, the

worker was acting as the supervisor for the crew.

 

May 10th                  Industrial               Toronto                 Electrician was changing the drive motor on a small monorail

1075683                                                                                    crane, made contact with a 600 V conductor, electrocuted.

 

June 2nd                  Industrial               Collingwood         Worker doing troubleshooting of HVAC system, had control

1076832                                                                                   panel open while power was still ON.  Made contact with

                                                                                                600 V, entry burns on fingers of right hand, exit burns on hand

                                                                                                and fingers of left hand.

 

June 28th                Construction         Brampton             Two workers taking down a large tent, tent pole contacted

1077319                                                                                  overhead power line.  One worker was critically injured by

                                                                                                the contact, the other worker was killed.  Voltage of single-

                                                                                                phase line was 4800 V.  There were no signs of entry wounds

                                                                                                on either worker, both workers had exit wounds on their feet.

 

 

 

Critical Injuries:

 

April 11th                Industrial               Severn                    Plant Manager was doing work in electrical panel when it

1062243                                                                                   blew up.  Worker received burns to face and right hand, lost

                                                                                                consciousness.

 

April 18th                Industrial               Toronto                 Two apprentice electricians were doing work unsupervised.

1074634                                                                                   Worker was filing piece of equipment in breaker box, touched

                                                                                                a live wire.  Worker received 3rd degree burns to arm.

 

April 28th                Industrial               Milton                    Pump specialist was working in an electrical panel, received

1072909                                                                                   electrical contact burns to hands.  Worker had locked out main

                                                                                                feed to panel, did not know that panel was also fed from a

                                                                                                stand-by generator.  Generator was arranged to start up

                                                                                                automatically on loss of main power to panel.

 

May 9th                  Industrial               Brampton             Worker installing electrical equipment when a flash occurred.

1075693                                                                                 Worker received burns to face and arms, lost consciousness for

                                                                                                a few seconds.

 

May 17th                Industrial               Etobicoke              Worker doing work from extension ladder, adjusting control

1074937                                                                                  limits for overhead door.  New door installation, live 600 V

                                                                                                exposed conductors present in control box.  Suspect that

                                                                                                worker made inadvertent contact with live conductor, shock

                                                                                                caused worker to fall about 17 feet to concrete floor.  Worker

                                                                                                sustained head injuries, broken back and ribs, and lost

                                                                                                consciousness.

 

May 31st                Industrial               Guelph                   Maintenance Department worker changing fluorescent light.

1076435                                                                                 Worker used a screwdriver, made contact.  Worker lost

                                                                                               consciousness for a few seconds, taken to hospital.

 

June 6th                  Industrial               Toronto                 Worker received a shock from a 347 V ballast, suffered burns

1077275                                                                                  to both hands and to right elbow.

 

June 13th                Industrial               St. Catherines       Fuse exploded while worker was changing it.  Worker suffered

1074469                                                                                  burns to face, neck, hands and eyes.

 

June 13th                Industrial               Wellesley               Worker was using tester in 600 V cabinet.  Arc happened,

1077054                                                   Township              worker received burns to right hand and arm.  Please note,

                                                                                                 event description mentioned tester, not multimeter.

 

 

Non-Critical Injuries:

 

April 19th                Construction         Kitchener              Worker operating boom truck, boom came close to 8 kV

1072544                                                                                   power line.  Worker suffered burns to leg and both hands.

 

April 22nd               Industrial               Vaughan                Electrician doing work in power room of shopping complex.

1029327                                                                                  Event happened, power tripped off to entire complex.  Worker

                                                                                                received burns to face and hands, no details given of work

                                                                                                being done at the time.

 

May 19th                 Industrial               Colborne               Worker dismantling a transformer box when it blew up in his

1073661                                                                                   face.  Worker taken to hospital, no other details of event given.

 

May 20th                 Industrial               Wellesley              Worker received a shock while touching two different pieces

1074521                                                  Township              of electrical equipment.  Worker suffered pain and numbness

                                                                                                in hands, did not lose consciousness.

 

May 25th                 Industrial               Sudbury                 Worker unplugging mirror from an outlet, received electrical

1074821                                                                                   shock.  Suffered burns to right hand.

 

May 25th                 Industrial               Richmond Hill      Store manager using ladder to change light bulb, received a

1074932                                                                                  120 V shock.  Received minor burns to hand.

 

June 1st                   Industrial               Orillia                     Electrician, working on electrical equipment, contacted 600 V.

1076698                                                                                  Suffered 2nd degree burns to right hand.  No information given

                                                                                                on what work was being done at the time.

 

June 1st                   Industrial               Orillia                     Worker received an electrical shock from a 120 V extension

1076718                                                                                   cord while plugging another cord into it.

 

June 3rd                  Construction         Mississauga          Electrician made contact with 347 volts, no details given of

1074973                                                                                   injuries suffered or work being done.

 

June 8th                  Industrial               Etobicoke              Worker on aluminum ladder changing light bulb.  Bulb broke,

1077006                                                                                  worker received shock from exposed wires and fell off ladder.

                                                                                                He received burns to hands and abrasions to elbows.

 

June 11th                Construction         Ingersoll                 Electrician made electrical contact, went home not to hospital.

1073210                                                                                   No details given of work being done or equipment involved.

 

June 14th                Industrial               Hamilton               Worker was using phone with headset.  Thunderstorm outside,

1077175                                                                                  worker received shock.  Suffered numbness in face, swollen

                                                                                                arms and face.

 

June 23rd                Industrial               Gormley                 Worker discharging asphalt through chute in back of dump

1073105                                                                                  truck, raised box contacted overhead lines.  Worker felt

                                                                                                tingling in left arm and shoulder.

 

June 23rd                Construction         Newmarket           Dump truck was backing up, hit power line.  One worker

1076561                                                                                 was touching truck, received a shock, taken to hospital.

 

June 23rd                Industrial               Oakville                 Worker tried to clean up a fish tank that was overflowing.

1077385                                                                                  Received shock from extension cords on floor beneath tank.

                                                                                                Treated at scene by paramedics and released.

 

June 27th                Industrial               Peterborough        Technician doing work on switchgear box in substation,

1076536                                                                                   received a shock.  Worker has minor burns to thumb and

                                                                                                 forearm.

 

June 29th                Construction         St. Catherines       Roofing contractor contacted overhead lines with metal

1078230                                                                                   ladder.  Workers hurt, no information given on injuries

                                                                                                 received by workers.

 

 

 

Powerline Contacts – No Injuries:

 

April 2nd                 Construction         Toronto                 Scaffolding fell on trolley and hydro lines. Lines broke, wound

1071081 & 1073889 (same event)                                       up on ground.

 

April 3rd                  Mining                   Meldrum Bay       Boom truck contacted neutral of 4160 V overhead line.

1072204

 

April 4th                  Construction         London                  Forklift contacted power lines, no other details given.

1071959

 

April 8th                  Construction         Georgina                Dump truck contacted power lines, lines wound up draped

1071986                                                                                   over the truck.

 

April 8th                  Construction         Dunnville               Excavator contacted overhead power line.

1072511

 

April 8th                  Construction         London                  Event description said powerline contact, no other details

1073859                                                                                   given.

 

April 13th                Construction         Mississauga          Box of dump truck contacted 44  kV power line.

1072029                                                                                    Truck tires blew up.

 

April 13th                Construction         Wellesley               Boom truck contacted overhead power line.

1074215                                                                                    Township

 

April 20th                Construction         Stittsville                Contractor dug up a buried line.

1063613               

 

April 21st                Construction         Whitby                   Tower crane contacted overhead power line.

1072714

 

April 25th                Construction         Waterloo               Contractor using Hi-Ho to dig a foundation, contacted buried

1072719                                                                                   power line.

 

April 25th                Industrial               Cambridge            Event listed as electrical occurrence, no other details given.

1072966

 

April 25th                Industrial               Sault Ste Marie    Workers removing a sign, boom was too close to power lines,

1074845                                                                                  and located over the lines.  No actual contact reported.

 

April 26th                Construction         Stoney Creek        Worker beginning to dig, dug up both the gas and hydro lines.

1056000

 

April 27th                Construction         London                  Boom truck hit overhead power line.

1072721

 

April 28th                Industrial               Sudbury                 Worker doing tree-trimming, hit a 7200 V power line.

1073067

 

April 29th                Construction         Port Elgin               Worker digging to repair a water leak, contacted primary

1056004                                                                                   conductors.

 

May 6th                  Construction         Brampton             Raised box of dump truck contacted overhead power lines.

1073697

 

May 9th                  Construction         Hearst                    Box of dump truck touched 14 kV overhead line.

1074121

 

May 9th                  Construction         Southampton       Contractor was doing road construction, dug up 240 V line.

1075259

 

May 9th                  Construction         Goderich                Contractor was moving hydraulic excavating truck into place,

1056204                                                                                   truck contacted overhead power lines.

 

May 10th               Construction         Rockland              Working too close to power lines.  No details given of work

107 5760                                                                               being done or equipment involved.

 

May 11th               Construction         Toronto                 Boom truck contacted overhead power lines.

1074204

 

May 11th              Construction         Harriston               Boom of boom truck contacted overhead lines, tires on truck

1074367                                                                                blew out.  Voltage of line not given.

 

May 11th              Construction         Sarnia                    Excavator came too close to 27 kV power line, arc occurred.

1075378

 

May 13th              Construction         St. Catherines       Worker installing grounds on de-energized conductor, wire

1075284                                                                                 made inadvertent contact with energized conductor.

                                                                                               No injuries reported.

 

May 13th              Mining                   Kitchener              Dump truck contacted overhead lines.

1075976

 

May 16th              Construction         Lindsay                Truck contacted the Bell line, caused power lines to snap.

1073791

 

May 17th             Construction         Collingwood         Installing watermain, contacted 2400 V overhead line. 

1074053                                                                                No details given of equipment involved.

 

May 18th              Construction         Oakville                Excavator dug up 4 kV buried line.

1075373

 

May 19th             Construction         Municipality         Contact made with power line during sanitary pipe installation.

1072813                                               not given               No other details given.

 

May 19th             Construction         Lanark County    Dump truck dumping asphalt into transfer box, contact made

1066363                                                                               with overhead power lines.

 

May 19th              Construction         Peterborough      Contractor excavating for sidewalk, dug up the 15 kV buried

1073792                                                                               cable with a BOBCAT.

 

May 20th               Construction         Nepean                Contractor dug into a buried primary cable, caused a major

1069866                                                                               outage in the area.

 

May 20th                Construction         Gloucester         Contractor working within ten feet of hydro line.  No details

1070701                                                                               given of work being done or equipment involved.

 

May 24th                Construction         Niagara-on-the-   Driver brought truck close to overhead line, arc jumped to

1076040                                                                Lake         truck.  Powerline voltage was not given.

 

May 27th               Construction         Thunder Bay       Installing a basketball post at site of existing post.  Contact

1076683                                                                                made with buried primary line.

 

May 30th               Construction         London                  Contact made with buried primary line.  Locates had been,

1076020                                                                                  contact was more than ten feet from marks.

 

May 30th               Construction         Peterborough      Doing rehab of underground services, contacted a 4 kV line.

1076583                                                                                No details given of equipment involved.

 

May 30th               Construction         Whitchurch         Contact made with power line, voltage was less than 750 V.

1074607                                                    Township          No other details given.

 

May 31st               Construction         Kirkland Lake      Dumptruck hit 44 kV overhead line.

1071321

 

June 2nd                 Construction         Brampton             Contractor hit primary cable.  No other details given.

1074958

 

June 6th                  Construction         Waterloo              Boom truck contacted primary lines.

1073198

 

June 6th                  Construction         London                Worker drilled into electrical conduit.  X-ray and conduit

1077167                                                                                 tracing had been done.

 

June 8th                  Construction         Burlington            Dump truck backing up, took down a 1600 V power line.

1076872

 

June 9th                  Construction         Sudbury               Event classified as electrical occurrence, no other details

1070588                                                                                 given.

 

June 14th                Construction         Toronto                Contact made with overhead power line, no other details of

1076220                                                                                 event given.

 

June 14th                Construction         Milton                   Dump truck backed into overhead power line.

1077186

 

June 20th                Construction         Markham              Backhoe cut into primary cable.

1075992

 

June 21st                Construction         Brampton             Contractor cut into a 27 kV power line.  No details of

1076546                                                                                 equipment involved.

 

June 21st                Construction         London                 Excavator dug up a buried primary cable.  Locates had been

1077088                                                                                 done, showed area was clear.

 

June 21st                Construction         Thunder Bay        Drilling test holes, contacted buried power line.

1078151

 

June 23rd                Construction         Garson                   Electrical wires knocked down, no other details given.

1076265

 

June 23rd                Construction         Waterloo               Dump truck contacted neutral of primary line.

1077468

 

June 23rd                Construction         Sault Ste. Marie   Excavator boom contacted overhead primary line.

1078037

 

June 27th                Construction         Thunder Bay        Workers had scaffolding set up over a secondary line, ladder

1071120                                                                                  on scaffolding contacted the line.

 

June 27th                Construction         Iroquois Falls        Backhoe contacted overhead power line.

1072390

 

June 27th                Construction         Markham              Contractor bored into a primary cable.

1076251

 

June 28th                Construction         Tillsonburg            Trolley of tower crane contacted 27 kV power line.

1073589

 

June 28th                Construction         London                  Boom of backhoe contacted 8 kV overhead line.  They were

1077861                                                                                  using a spotter at the time.

 

 

 

DATA SUMMARY - Second Quarter

 

                                Fatals:                   Criticals:              Non-criticals:                      Powerline             Electrical

                                                                                                                                                Contacts:              Equipment:

 

2005                            4                                9                                 17                                        60                             0

2004                            3                                4                                 16                                        48                             0

2003                            3                                7                                 25                                        39                             0

2002                            1                                9                                 17                                        28                             1

2001                            1                              13                                12                                        32                             2

               

2000                            2                                5                                 22                                        34                             1

1999                            2                                9                                 22                                        32                             0

1998                            2                                4                                 17                                        30                             0

 

 

And Finally…..

 

May 21st                                Industrial               Red Rock              The event description said, “An employee struck his lighter in

1069871                                                                Township              order to burn a spider”.  The employee, along with another

                                                                                                               worker, were in a propane cylinder storage shed at the time.

                                                                                                               The inevitable happened, with only the first worker getting any

                                                                                                               serious burns.  The company is now locking the shed.

 

 

Information taken from Ministry of Labour MIS database

Report prepared: September 7, 2005

 

Assembled by:     Michael Reiser                                     Provided to MHE by: Tony Moscioni 

                                Engineer                                                Electrical Inspector

                                PSS – Kitchener District                     Electrical Safety Authority

 

[ View More Newsletters ] [ Please Reply With Your Comments | View Comments ]

Basic Electrical Theory - Standard Library Video
Do you know where electricity comes from? To be able to say yes to that question, you must understand a bit about the physics of matter. What value does a brief study of the nature of matter have for the student of electrical theory? The understanding that comes from that study lays the foundation for understanding electrical theory. Only when you know the theory can you truly have confidence in the practical aspects of your electrical work.

This all new 430-plus page full-color textbook provides hundreds of illustrated graphics, detailed examples, practice questions, practice exams, summaries and a comprehensive practice final exam. Includes textbook/workbook and three videos; Electrical Fundamentals and Basic Electricity; Electrical Circuits, Systems and Protection; and Alternating Current, Motors, Generators, and Transformers. Purchased separately this Library would cost $377, you save $102.

Product Code: ETLIBV
Pages: 320
Illustrations: 278
Price:
$275.00 each

 
[ Please Reply With Your Comments | View Comments ] [ View More Newsletters ]

F o r w a r d   t h i s   N e w s l e t t e r   t o   a   F r i e n d !
Do you have a friend, relative, or colleague who you think would be interested in receiving this free newsletter? If so, we encourage you to forward this message along to them. If you received this email from someone else, and wish to receive your own free issues of our newsletter, sign up today!

C o n t a c t    I n f o r m a t i o n
   
 

Copyright © 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005 Mike Holt Enterprises, Inc. All rights reserved.
This article is protected by United States copyright and other intellectual property laws and may not be
displayed or published on the internet without the prior written permission of Mike Holt Enterprises, Inc.

http://www.MikeHolt.com     1-888-NEC-CODE (1-888-632-2633)

Comments
  • The fatalities are really tragic, and it's disturbing that professional utility workers and electricians are often involved.

    I have a little electrical tester that beeps when it is held near an energized 120v wire or terminal. I wonder if there's some way that such a device could be reduced in size and incorporated into a ring or something that could be worn on a worker's hand. It might let him know that he is reaching into danger.


    Reply to this comment

  • My father once slid the metal door of a shed containing propane tanks open, only to be confronted by an obvious leak. Fortunately there were no sparks despite the protest noises made by the balky door. He poured himself more than one drink when he got home. Something to consider but probably not in the code when you make a place to store flammable gas.

    Matt


    Reply to this comment

  • Good info. Thank you, keep it comming

    L.w. Brittian

    L. W. Brittian
    Reply to this comment

  • The ring idea sounds good on the surface but wearing jewelry while performing electrical work is a bad idea.

    The field meters are small enough now (pen size) that there is no excuse not to use them.

    Steve
    Reply to this comment

  • You know these things happen all the time But its good that you post them. Some times we all get to comfortable with our jobs. This is when an accident can happen. doing the same thing time after time we all look for short cuts . I dont delite in others faults but if you know about them it might make you think twice. My lesson for all 1st year electricians is you cant take shortcuts unless you know how to do the job correctly the long way

    brian bergman
    Reply to this comment

  • The part that I find amazing is that most of the fatal/critical accidents occured in industrial applications. With this in mind, it is amazing that the NEC gives many, many allowances to "industrial facalities where the conditions of maintainance and supervision ensure that only qualified persons service the installation". Perhaps these allowances in the code should be reconsidered?

    Tragic :(

    Ryan Jackson
    Reply to this comment

  • I would like to have more of these stories posted for me to view. Every company has "brave" employees and some that are just plain stupid so to speak though really untrained. Though tragic, the facts and occurances that happen to others definately help and refresh your memory of just how dangerous your job really can be.

    Aaron
    Reply to this comment


Get notified when new comments are posted here
* Your Email:
 
        
 
Add Your Comments to this Newsletter
* Your Name:
   Your name will appear under your comments.

* Your Email:
   Your email address is not displayed.
* Comments:

Email Notification Options:
Notify me when a reply is posted to this comment
Notify me whenever a comment is posted to this newsletter