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Subscribe to RSSAs TODAY's Natalie Morales reports, two women were electrocuted to death by water after rushing to help a driver who had slammed his car into a fire hydrant and utility pole in California. One witness, James Pike, describes the horrific scene.
Two women were electrocuted Wednesday after trying to help the victims of a car accident in Los Angeles, fire department officials said.
The women, who have not been identified, were apparently responding separately to the scene of a crash in Valley Village in the San Fernando Valley region of Los Angeles., where a vehicle slammed into a fire hydrant and a light pole which knocked down a power line around 8:30 p.m.
Rick Mcclure / AP
Los Angeles fire captain Cristian Granucci examines the wreckage of a car as water from a fire hydrant sits gushes out behind it after the crash.
The SUV came to a stop about 10 feet away from the fire hydrant, which burst, shooting water two stories into the air, witnesses said. The gushing water quickly pooled underneath the vehicle where the damaged light pole left electrical wires sticking out of the ground.
Fire department officials said the wires were disguised by the darkness, the running water and the growing number of startled neighbors and passing drivers who came running to help. Unbeknownst to the first people who tried to help the victim of the crash, an adult male, the water was electrified.
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A woman who lived in a nearby home rushed out to the scene and stepped into the electrified water and was electrocuted.
A husband and wife who were driving by also stopped and rushed to help. That woman was also electrocuted. Her husband suffered only minor injuries.
Rick Mcclure / AP
Firefighters and paramedics examine two of the eight victims who were shocked after attempting to aid a car crash victim as water gushes from the fire hyrdant.
“I came running out and I saw the car and I saw the water, and then all of the sudden I saw a lady come out of nowhere,” a witness, Christie Vergini, told Fox LA. “She walked, stepped in the water, fell back on her back with her arms straight out, and then I ran back to the house to get my mom and came back. There was a huge crowd of people. Another lady supposedly was reaching in to help her got shocked too, and they were trying to help her and everybody was like stand back, don’t touch the water."
“Everybody panicking because they couldn’t help the woman on the ground because of the live wire,” another witness, Liz Casmier told Fox LA.” I mean, it was obvious she needed aid, but nobody could do anything because of the live wire in the water. It was horrifying.”
Five others, ranging in ages from 19 to 57, followed and were electrically shocked, fire department officials said.
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“I run outside, and across the street I see two women laying on the sidewalk,” a witness, James Pike, told NBCLosAngeles.com. “I see two or three young gentlemen keep trying to rescue them and pull them to safety and each time they would try to pull them there were getting shocked.”
When Los Angeles firefighters arrived to the scene, they used rubber gloves and a long pole to pull the two women, who lay motionless on the ground, from the water. Seven of the eight victims were taken to an area hospital, where the two women were pronounced dead. One of the victims who suffered minor injuries declined to be taken to the hospital.
NBC News
An aerial view of the accident in Los Angeles which killed two people.
In total, 55 additional firefighters were dispatched to the scene, who secured the area and treated victims.
The Department of Water and Power shut off the water supply to the fire hydrant and electricity to the power lines. Investigators from the LAPD Valley Traffic Division said excessive speed was likely a factor of the car accident. Alcohol was not believe to be involved.
“This tragic accident, in some ways can serve as a warning,” Los Angeles Fire Department Spokesman Erik Scott said. “Many people, with nothing but the best intentions, were injured and killed while trying to save others. This reminds all who want to help at the scene of an emergency to stay aware of their surroundings, and if there is any question as to safety, please wait for trained rescuers to arrive.”
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Leave a Comment:
To the people/person blaming God: people made the choices and nature does the rest! Consequences to human acts/choices bear out! I'm sure they were not victims of an angry God! Blaming God for accidents is theologically unsound thinking and indicates the person engaged in blaming HIM aren't reading the Bible or investigating and studying it either! Today's average Amerikan has little to do with reading or studying the Bible. Ask any Pastor, Priest, or Minister and he/she will corroborate that finding, or the corollary they read it with a mindset based on what they are programmed to think like the people in French Guiana with James Jones who drank the tainted Kool-Aid, killing themselves. Religion is a dangerous thing, but faith is enlightening and freeing when based on seeking the Truth with a spirit of honesty, open-mindedness, and willingness tah follow it wherever it leads you!
Ok seriously. How many freakin' people were electrocuted? 2? 7?
Title says 2. Yet the story says more. Electrocuted doesn't mean dead if that's what the title implies.
2 died, 7 were electrocuted including the dead women.
Actually that's exactly what electrocution is
From Wikipedia:
Electrocution is death caused by electric shock, either accidental or deliberate. The word is derived from "electro" and "execution", but it is also used for accidental death.
I looked at 3 other definitions and only one mentions "to injure or kill". Plus the article describes the other five people as "treated for electric shocks".
They formed a line of people holding hands getting zapped. If the fire department hadn't gotten there the line would have stretched across town.
God bless those two women. They gave their lives trying to help somone else. My condolences to their families.
its great wanting to be the hero and help someone in trouble, but believe it or not, you should stand back and let the professionals do their job, having been in the profession, i have seen many innocent bystanders trying to help become victims themselves!!!!! people, it isnt worth killing yourself to help someone.. hope ya take this the right way, but if you arent 100% sure, DONT !!!!! and even then be very careful? ? ? ? ? ?
people arguing over silly things on here yet two lives are lost trying to help another.. God was there when he needed to be, with those women taking the pain away that they were going through.. That's how I like to think of it.. we all have out own opinions and too each his own.. Just keep it classy people..
Deepest Condolences to those women and their families.. Two angels got their wings.. RIP <3
When in High School I was being driven home from school by a girl friend in a bad storm. High wind and rain with thunder and lightning. Very scary. Drove down a street didn't see the wires down across the road because of the rain. The wire wrapped around the hood ornament and scared us half to death. I refused to let us get out of the car for fear the power line was live. We honked the horn which had a plastic cover. Thankfully a woman in a house got our attention and told us the line wasn't live. At about the same instant a man approached the car from the other side and removed the wire, told us it was safe to go. That incident is still very vivid in my memory from 54 years ago. Also learned what to do around a downed wires and approaching a situation involving possible loose electricity. Served me well these many years.
Well this just goes to show they had courage. They did not know...they would have been better w a wooden pole and some gloves...even at that would have been difficult...guess the only way would have been to shoot the wires to cut the electrical power...but...then again still risky...
This one was meant for the FIRE DEPT..only...sad to say poor ladies they got fried...
My heart goes out to them and the families...
Yeah, I read the entire article. Um... A power pole? That means power lines are connected. And as far as the hidden factor is concerned, why the heck is someone running blind up to an unsafe environment?
No one said they were overhead
Which is why they didn't know the wires were exposed!
A neighborhood road with bare tall wooden poles, thats probably placed every 50 to 100 feet in a linear configuration? Any kid would tell you that's power lines. Seriously, it's not rocket science.
And on that note, why would there be powerpoles if the lines were underground?
Light pole. Not power pole. Said the light pole knocked down a power line, but that it was the damaged wires under the light pole that were causing the problem with the water.
Okay, so a light pole? Wasn't there glass on the road from the light pole? And, of course, lights on light poles are run by electricity. Electricity is carried through power lines, that may be underground, or overhead. In any case, would any of you actually run up to an accident involvning a vehcile and a pole and water, without proper training or equipment?
I wouldn't.
I try and look at it this way; I read this,you read it and so did all these other god people having a fight. so these brave women just may have prevented more lives lost buy losing theirs. if you believe in a higher power perhaps that it is what happened to prevent more accidents such as this, if you dont, thats fine too. Who knows what i woulvde or wouldnt have done? Ive been in a bad accident where the jetta was wrapped around a light pole from a drunk driver that t boned me. I jumped out to see if my passenger was ok. I couldve been elctricuted and people ran out of their homes and also came to our aid. These women are heros and so are the men that tried to save them. thank god someone still gives a rats ass.
INFORMATIVE STORY! -the more you know.. I probably would have rushed in and gotten electrocuted as well. I'll make sure the FIRST thing I look for, after FIRE, will always be electric wires. Turns out they dont scream and pop like in the movies! The More You Know...
So sad when people try to help others and they wind up victims themselves.
Wow!! Peter you are quiet a character; May they rest in peace.
My sympathy and prayers go out to the families of the victims in this tragic story.
So one lady ran in, gets zapped, then another and she gets zapped, then someone else and they form a line of people zapped.
This is why I am not a good samaritan.
I too, am a retired firefighter. Part of incident command is to survey the situation "size up". First and foremost aspect of commanding the incident prior to sending in your response crews. The samaritans good intentions were there only to meet their demise from not realizing the danger presented. Best wishes for their survinging family members.
So the lady leaves her house upon hearing the crash because her power went out and she wanted to see who hit the pole that caused the power outage and to yell and ridicule the operator of the vehicle who was driving carelessly and speeding and she gets electrocuted and dies. That is my scenario of this tragedy.
It's funny how a chatty Cathy like you is telling others to STFU. That is what forums are all about. Senseless rants and ridiculous opinions (like mine) and it is what makes it interesting.
I happen to agree with you Thankyousoldiers. Matter of fact, we can also add that the Dancing with the Stars show was on, and the power loss enraged the two women.
oops...surviving family members
I think that another problem that people have overlooked is the fact that there is an international power grid instead of individual systems with their own light sources. To say that it can not be done is a complete and total load of crap because there IS the technology to power street lights and a business CAN use solar and wind power and solar heaters to not only cut down on the costs of making electricity but also to prevent tragedies, or, at the very least, reduce them significiantly. I also agree with the people that say that there needs to be a similar cut off system for each individual building and electrical pole or area like there is for fire hydrants so that people do NOT get shocked. The problems that arose here are not necessarily those of the lack of knowledge of what to do in this kind of situation, nor of the initial people that were involved in the crash, rather, the ultimate problem is the lack of retrofitting to the fire hydrant system and to the concept of an electrical/power grid. Even IF someone were to think about their situation, there would STILL be circumstances in which people would have been electrocuted, despite taking all of the proper safety precautions and having the proper safety gear. Remember, people, knowledge is power and preparation helps you stay alive or at least greatly increases the chances of you staying alive.
As a firefighter/EMT I can tell you that electricity scares me more than fire, heights, gas, Haz-mat, etc. Those are risks that are pretty easy to identify and mitigate. But any firefighter will tell you that what makes electricity so dangerous is the fact that it can be very difficult to detect. The responding firefighters may have fallen victim to it if it weren't for the fact that they already knew two people had been electrocuted. Even the pros can have a tough time identifying that hazard.
As being a FF/EMT also, I was trained to look for hazardous environments and not to approach the scene untill the scene was safe. Who cares if the wires were underground. I wouldn't have walked up on that wreck untill the power company confirmed that power was not flowing through that area. A car on a pole always should trigger a thought in a responder's head that there might be electricity in the area. Especailly with water on the ground.
This just breaks my heart. I am a First Aid instructor, and the first thing you teach people is to survey the scene and make sure it is SAFE for you to enter. Never, ever rush upon a scene without checking to make sure it is safe for you to approach it. Unfortunately, these women did not do this and now there are 2 extra victims and families that are devastated. Downed power lines are almost always active and should be avoided at all costs - even if the person inside is injured and needs help.
God bless these families and may they take comfort in knowing their loved ones died trying to save another.
Surviving families of the Good Citizens should sue the Drivers Estate. The DRIVER created the situation and should be held accountable. I think CA has a Good Samaritan Law, which states that people MUST help in cases such as these. Very sad.
Shocking news....
"two women were electrocuted to death by water"...come on people, PROOF READ.
Re-read it. It is not written as you quoted...
He is referring to the caption of the video with the small grey text.
Condolences to the families of the two lost ones. The very rare part of this story is that the Good Samaritans are women. Nearly always, women stay out of risking their lives to help anyone other than their own child.
God damn it Denali - you don't miss a phucking beat in your misogyny.
The irony is that the safest person in that situation was the guy in the car that had the accident. Cars are electrically neutral And the tires are enough of an isolator to keep the high voltage from reaching the car's frame. OFC the Woman did not see that there was an electrical situation, but if you ever see a car under damaged lines DO NOT try to help. In all likely hood the driver will not be electrocuted if he stays within the car until help comes.