Shock Alert being used in Smith Mountain Lake

Rebecca Jackson

Members of two Smith Mountain Lake volunteer fire departments are conducting free voltage checks of docks with a special apparatus, a “Shock Alert,” to detect a potentially fatal electrical charge coursing through the water.

With a voltage detector, Smith Mountain Lake Marine Fire and Rescue is checking the water around docks and other lake structures, doing 20 such checks in recent months. Stray voltage has been discovered in every instance but two, firefighter Neil Harrington told the Smith Mountain Lake Water Safety Council at its meeting Wednesday.

“Voltage was found around every dock, old and new, except two,” Harrington said. “No stray amount is normal.”

The safety council gave Scruggs Fire, Rescue and Dive enough money to purchase a voltage detector so they, too, can conduct checks and potentially save the lives of residents, visitors and even first responders responding to emergencies around docks.

Electric shock drowning is a real and present danger in many places, including Smith Mountain Lake, although to date, there are no records of such an incident occurring here.

Several years ago, over the Independence Day weekend, two Missouri siblings died in what could have been a preventable tragedy.

Alexandra Anderson, 13, and her brother, Brayden Anderson, 8, were swimming next to a private dock in the Lake of the Ozarks when they started to scream. Their parents raced to their aid, but by the time rescuers pulled the siblings from the lake, they were unresponsive. Both children were pronounced dead after being transported to a nearby hospital. Just two hours later, in Tennessee, a 10-year-old boy died in Cherokee Lake in a similar manner, and according to press reports, seven other swimmers were injured near where the boy died.

These were not the victims of drowning, but of a phenomenon known as Electric Shock Drowning (ESD). In all of the cases, 120-volt alternating current leakage from nearby boats or docks electrocuted or incapacitated swimmers in fresh water. In just four months during the summer of 2012, seven cases of ESD were confirmed, as well as many near misses, and a lot of incidents were undetected.

The heartbreaking phenomenon could happen at Smith Mountain Lake, or any body of fresh water, according to Tom Merriman, a member of the Smith Mountain Lake Water Safety Council. Merriman, a native of Ohio who has called the lake home since 1998, learned about ESD in stories published in BoatUS.com.

“It caught my attention,” said Merriman. “A lot of those conditions are present at Smith Mountain Lake. Clearly, it’s our educational responsibility as a safety council to alert people to the possibility. We care about boating safety and other water-related safety issues, and I think we should raise awareness of ESD. I talked to a fellow recently who experienced a tingling sensation in the water,” possibly caused by electrical current. “It’s a big red flag.”

Most of the hundreds of private and commercial docks on Smith Mountain Lake have electrical service, bringing current through conduits to power lights and boat lifts. Merriman said his own dock at Spinnaker Run also has a 220 line to run an irrigation pump for his yard.

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Pasco teen’s death linked to faulty pump wiring

BY KRISTIN M. KRAEMER

OCTOBER 01, 2017 2:28 PM

State inspectors have concluded that faulty wiring at a pump house led to the death of a Pasco teen while he was swimming in the Columbia River.

Cole R. Grad was shimmying across a concrete wall and wire fence surrounding the private irrigation facility on Aug. 10 when he touched an electrified pipe connected to the pump system.

The shock paralyzed the 15-year-old, and he went underwater.

A report from the state Department of Labor & Industries shows that a cable “went to ground,” energizing the outside case of the motor.

The faulty wiring made it so a breaker couldn’t be tripped to stop the electricity from flowing.

“Contact with any part of the motor, pump or suction line and any other grounded surface would most likely cause enough current flow to produce an electric shock,” the report said.

Inspectors noted that part of the pump had recently been worked on.

Pump wiring photo 1
A report from the state Department of Labor & Industries found faulty wiring made it so a breaker couldn’t be tripped in the pump house.
Department of Labor & Industries

A department supervisor and lead inspector responded to the scene the following morning at the request of Franklin PUD officials. The investigation into Cole’s death was led by Pasco police detectives.

Angela and Jessie Grad said their son was enjoying the last days of summer as he prepared for his sophomore year at Chiawana High School.

Cole, who played football and baseball, was described as adventurous, happy and hardworking.

Cole and two friends had gone to the swimming spot south of Road 80 because they could use the wall to jump into a deeper part of the river.

After Cole fell into the river, his friends used one of their cellphones to call 911 at 8:24 p.m. An ambulance, fire engine and the Pasco Fire Rescue boat responded.

Two firefighters received electrical shocks while trying to get to Cole. A fire captain had to break into the pump house to shut off the service, then a Franklin PUD line crew cut the power at a nearby pole, de-energizing the area.

Cole was taken to Kadlec Regional Medical Center in Richland. His death was determined to be the result of an electric shock drowning.

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Shedding light on electric shock risks at Lake Anna

A Lake Anna woman is working to get the word out to residents and marina owners about the risk of electric shock drowning.

The little-known problem can develop when the electrical outlets and wires on boat docks are not properly maintained. Electricity can seep into the water, posing a potentially lethal threat to swimmers.

Ruthie Haden, who lives in the Bienvenue subdivision, became aware of the issue after reading about two women who died on an Alabama lake earlier this year. Since then, she’s been working with her homeowner’s association to upgrade the electrical connections on their common area dock.

“You assume when you step onto your dock that everything’s okay,” she said.

Haden and an officer of the homeowners’ association found the covers had broken off of five outlets on the common area dock. She wasn’t sure what other problems an electrician may find. But she said it’s possible some of the electrical work may not have been inspected in the past 40 years.

With the outlet covers not properly covered, or when wires are not well-insulated, there is greater risk of water getting into the electrical devices, along with dirt and grit present in the water. This can lead to deterioration of wiring and, eventually, an electrical fault.

When that happens, electricity can’t necessarily get back to its source through wiring. If there is anything made of metal located between the wires and nearby water, such as a ladder, the electricity can use the metal as a path into the water itself.

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Family warns about unseen dangers after son is electrocuted in flood waters
By 
HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) —

A family whose son died in floods brought on by Tropical Storm Harvey is pleading with first responders, volunteers and residents to be aware of unseen dangers beneath the water.

Tuesday around 2:30 p.m., Andrew Pasek, 25, and his friend Shawn went to a home in the Bear Creek 1 subdivision near Highway 6 and Clay Road. They were there to get Pasek’s sister’s cat left behind in the rush to evacuate their home.

Eyewitness News Reporter Steven Romo sat down with Andrew’s mother, Jodell Pasek, Wednesday. Not even 24 hours after her son died, she wanted to get the message out about the unseen electrical danger.

Andrew stepped in the yard unaware that a landscape light electrified the water. He stumbled and grabbed the lamppost, using his last words to warn his friend to stay away, his mother said.

“They couldn’t even help my son. They couldn’t resuscitate him. He was in electrified water,” she said.
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Saudi child who drowned in swimming pool in India

Only destiny knew that the trip of the Saudi family who lost their child in the swimming pool will be their last trip with him, as the vacation turned into a funeral as they lost their child after an electric shock in a children’s pool in Kumarakom, India.

Alaa Eddin Ibrahim, 4 years, died in a children’s pool opposite to his parents and his older brother, who was rescued from the electric shock after escaping from the pool.

Ibrahim Abdel Rahman, father of Aladdin, told Al Arabiya that he was spending a family vacation in India, through one of the offers of a tourist company, he carefully chose the hotels, and they were in the middle of their vacation when they arrived at the hotel.

“There were two separate swimming pools, with a bridge in between, one of which was for children, it was like a playground rather than a swimming pool, while the other was for adults, Aladdin and his brother Magd were playing in the swimming pool while we were watching them.” Ibrahim added the details of the accident.

He continued: “There were lights placed at the side of the Children’s Aqua playground; they were for a party held days ago and when the child approached it, the lights illuminated, which caused the child to be electrically shocked, and fell on his back without moving.”

The father said that the witness for this story is a British Doctor of Indian origin was close to him, as he tried to save him after the shock, but he was shocked as well but survived it same as my other child who survived the electrical shock as well.

Slacking in investigations

Ibrahim pointed out that the Indian police was negligent, they considered the incident as drowning and did not consider the electrical shock despite there were witnesses, they did not take their views, although the British doctor who tried to save my child was there, however he did not take his testimony, as the investigators relied on the words of the owners of the hotel.

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SML first responders use new tool to protect themselves from electric shock

They’re warning people about electricity in the water around docks

By Jessica Jewell – Weekend Anchor / Reporter

MONETA, Va. – First responders are warning about a big problem in the water that’s completely invisible and could be deadly.

“You can’t see… (but) as soon as you get in the water, you get hit with the electricity” SML Marine Volunteer Fire Rescue Firefighter Neil Harrington said.

That’s what Smith Mountain Lake Marine Volunteer Fire Rescue crews say they’re seeing at some docks around the lake.

“I’m sure there’s a lot of facilities around the lake that were wired back 50 years ago or 30 years ago that probably need to upgrade their wiring,” Harrington said.

Infrastructure deteriorates over time, exposing wires and potentially putting electric current into the water.

“Typically what you’ll feel is a tingling sensation, which is the only warning that you get as you’re approaching the source of the electricity. If you were to go in right at the source of electricity, you’ll be electrocuted instantly,” Harrington said.

That’s why Harrington is using a new device, which detects electricity flowing through the water.

“Any amount of electricity is too much for me. I don’t want to come into contact with electricity and the water,” Harrington said.

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Family sues PSE, saying daughter, 18, was electrocuted while tubing the Puyallup River
Madeline “Maddy” Roskie, 18, of Pierce County, died on Aug. 2, 2014 while inner-tubing down the Puyallup River. A lawsuit filed by her father this month against Puget Sound Energy and other as-yet unnamed defendants alleges that an improperly grounded irrigation pump in or near the river electrocuted the honor student. (Courtesy of the Roskie family) While Madeline “Maddy” Roskie was floating down the river with her boyfriend, her legs went numb, then within seconds she fell unconscious, a lawsuit alleges.

By 

 
Seattle Times staff reporter

 

 

Madeline Roskie was 18 and set to go off to college in the fall when she went inner-tubing with her boyfriend on a hot August day three years ago.

By the end of the day the healthy honor student was dead, the victim of a silent, invisible killer, according to a lawsuit filed by her father, Earl Roskie.

Roskie’s suit alleges that his daughter was electrocuted by an ungrounded irrigation pipe or pump in the Puyallup River and is seeking unspecified damages from Puget Sound Energy and several as-yet unnamed defendants.

Madeline “Maddy” Roskie was floating at the edge of the river in her inner tube when she suddenly felt her legs go numb, then fell unconscious and died, according to the suit filed earlier this month in Pierce County Superior Court.

Attorneys for the Roskie family say that although Maddy did not drown, they believe she was a victim of the phenomenon called Electric Shock Drowning, which they claim is a surprisingly common, and yet little known, freshwater hazard.

According to the suit, Roskie went inner-tubing in the river near the 96th Street Bridge east of Tacoma on Aug. 2, 2014.

She and her boyfriend took an initial run down the section of river and then walked back upstream to go again, the suit claims.

“While they were waiting in their tubes for another group to pass, Maddy complained that her legs were going numb. Within seconds, she became unconscious,” the suit claims.

Her boyfriend, who also experienced tingling in his fingers, floated her to shore, where CPR was started and help was called.

“Maddy Roskie was pronounced dead shortly after emergency personnel arrived. She had not experienced any blunt trauma, did not drown, and had no drugs, alcohol or toxins in her system to account for her death,” the suit alleges, adding that she was wearing a life jacket.

Roskie’s suit alleges that his daughter was electrocuted by an ungrounded irrigation pipe or pump in the Puyallup River and is seeking unspecified damages from Puget Sound Energy and several as-yet unnamed defendants.

Madeline “Maddy” Roskie was floating at the edge of the river in her inner tube when she suddenly felt her legs go numb, then fell unconscious and died, according to the suit filed earlier this month in Pierce County Superior Court. Attorneys for the Roskie family say that although Maddy did not drown, they believe she was a victim of the phenomenon called Electric Shock Drowning, which they claim is a surprisingly common, and yet little known, freshwater hazard.

According to the suit, Roskie went inner-tubing in the river near the 96th Street Bridge east of Tacoma on Aug. 2, 2014.

She and her boyfriend took an initial run down the section of river and then walked back upstream to go again, the suit claims.

“While they were waiting in their tubes for another group to pass, Maddy complained that her legs were going numb. Within seconds, she became unconscious,” the suit claims.

Her boyfriend, who also experienced tingling in his fingers, floated her to shore, where CPR was started and help was called.

“Maddy Roskie was pronounced dead shortly after emergency personnel arrived. She had not experienced any blunt trauma, did not drown, and had no drugs, alcohol or toxins in her system to account for her death,” the suit alleges, adding that she was wearing a life jacket.

On Aug. 22, a Puget Sound Energy technician found that the source of the problem appeared to be an irrigation pump going into the river on a property adjacent to where Maddy died, according to the suit.

Three days later, a Pierce County associate medical examiner contacted East Pierce Fire and Rescue to express his concern that “an electrical hazard in or near the water at that location may have caused this girl’s death,” the suit claims.

The associate medical examiner had arrived at the possible explanation after eliminating other potential causes of death, according to one of Roskie’s attorneys, Kathy Goater.

That same day an operations manager from Puget Sound Energy told East Pierce Fire and Rescue that the problem had been found in an irrigation pipe and it was scheduled for repair the following day, on Aug. 26.

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Public meeting Monday on possible new Lake Tuscaloosa safety regulations

Lake Tuscaloosa Image (WBRC/Terri Brewer)

TUSCALOOSA, AL (WBRC) –

A public meeting to discuss possible new regulations for docks on Lake Tuscaloosa is scheduled for Monday at 6 p.m. at the Phelps Activity Center in Tuscaloosa.

In a Facebook post by Tuscaloosa City Council President Cynthia Almond, she encourages any property owners on the lake or anyone interested in the issue to attend. The Lake Tuscaloosa area is in Almond’s district.

Tuscaloosa city officials are currently exploring new safety regulations for structures on the lake, following the death of two women earlier this year, as a result of electric shock drowning.

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Chilmark to seal off Crab Corner, post hazard signs

Chilmark will mark Crab Corner with formalized signs that indicate a shock hazard may be present in the water, selectman Jim Malkin, the board’s harbor liaison, announced at the selectmen’s July 11 meeting.

Crab Corner will also be cordoned with fencing, per a consensus reached at that meeting between the beach committee, selectmen, and executive secretary Tim Carroll. Crab Corner is a popular children’s swimming and wading spot, bookended by the Menemsha jetty and the town’s transient dock, where several people have reported feeling electric current when in contact with the water, including a group of schoolchildren on a field trip.

The signs are a national code necessity, Mr. Malkin said, and also part of an “abundance of caution” approach by the town.

Beach superintendent Martina Mastromonaco described the current hand-lettered “No Swimming” sign positioned between string-draped traffic cones as “jury-rigged,” and said she was in favor of more professional signage, but cautioned against placing placards that could be misconstrued.

“I mean, honestly, there’s sharks in the water, too, so if you put a sign up that says warning, potentially it could mean shark,” she said.

Sharks notwithstanding, she touched on other threats she perceives at Crab Corner.

“There’s a lot of potential hazards in that area,” she said. “I’ve seen kids before we had the shocking thing jumping off the dock, and you know it is a boating area.” She also said recent dredging has left the area with a steep drop-off.

Ms. Mastromonaco also expressed concern about her lifeguards’ ability to cover Menemsha Beach and Crab Corner simultaneously.

“I’m just worried because my guards are not stationed right at the entrance where people go into the water,” she said. “They’re stationed on the beach, as opposed to the last week in June, [when] they sat right in front of the corner.”

Mr. Malkin said he was open to discussing placement of a dedicated lifeguard at Crab Corner.

“Until our town electrical inspector signs off on what has been done — signs off on what we’re doing and then on what was done — I’m not willing as the liaison to the harbor to put people in potential jeopardy,” he said.

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Electric shock felt by two local kayakers on the lake
BY  ON 

An electric shock felt by two residents in the lake serves as a reminder for Canyon Lake residents to inspect electrical wiring to and around docks, pools and spas.

During a Canyon Lake Public Safety Committee meeting, Special Enforcement Officer Gina Dickson reported that two residents felt an electrical current when they stuck an aluminum oar in the water.

The Special Enforcement Officer stated that it was the electric wiring from a boat dock that caused the shock. The officer further explained that the city’s Building and Safety Department currently does not inspect electrical wiring to docks, but they are looking into developing a standard for running electrical to docks. When asked what steps the city will be taking regarding electrical wiring to docks, City Manager Aaron Palmer said, “The city attorney is looking into the matter to see who is responsible for enforcing wiring to docks.”

According to the non-profit Electric Shock Drowning Prevention Association, there is no visible warning or way to tell if water surrounding a boat, marina or dock is energized or within seconds will become energized with fatal levels of electricity.

Known as the silent killer, water electrocution drowning has been getting more attention since a 15 year-old girl from Alabama drowned in 2016 after receiving an electrical shock near the family’s boat dock.

The girl’s father, Jimmy Johnson, explained in an interview to CBS News that the source of the shock was a light switch that was half full of water. “When an aluminum ladder was placed in the water the electrical current traveled from the light switch down the dock, to the ladder and the surrounding water,” explained the father.

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