A man was electrocuted when he stood against a truck that touched a power line.
Updated: Tuesday, 16 Jun 2009, 6:26 PM MDT
Published : Tuesday, 16 Jun 2009, 6:26 PM MDT
MESA - A 20-year-old man is dead after a tragic accident at a construction site. Mauricio Ganadara was working with his father when he was electrocuted.
Ganadara's father was at the controls of a crane, which touched an overhead power line. Electricity surged down into the truck -- where Ganadara was leaning up against it.
Mesa firefighters hosed down the construction truck after a lethal jolt from a power line killed Ganadara.
The father and son were doing landscaping at the site of the new Banner Healthcare Network building.
It appears that the truck was using boom and cables to move boulders, and somehow cables got too close to the overhead electrical wires.
"Because the kid was not grounded, he was standing, leaning against the truck, he got electrocuted. He had burns on left side and his back -- the power threw him about 20 feet," says Thurl Watson of the Mesa Fire Department.
SRP's Scott Harelson said, "This line was a 12,000-volt distribution line, this is a very common neighborhood distribution power line."
The father did not receive any injuries.
OSHA is investigating the case. It's a reminder not to operate equipment close to overheard power lines.