Man hospitalized with ‘serious burns’ after electric shock in Box Elder County

ELWOOD, Box Elder County — A 21-year-old man was flown from Box Elder County to a Salt Lake burn center Monday with “serious burns” after being shocked while working on fiber optic cables on telephone poles.

At 1:12 p.m., emergency medical personnel responded to a call about a man who had received an electric shock while working at 8515 N. 4600 West in Elwood, Box Elder County Chief Deputy Sheriff Cade Palmer said.

“The cable he was holding got charged; either the power line arced to it, or it touched the power line and entered through his palms,” Palmer said. The injured man suffered third-degree burns on his hands and a burn on his right hip where the power exited, he said.

The man had been working in a bucket on a boom lift in a residential area; other crew members of the communications company on the ground called for assistance.

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