Abstract: On January 16, 2014, Employee #1 and #2 were working in a crew of seven. The crew was prepared to install high voltage electrical cable on multiple streets. This high voltage electrical cable would pass through piped passages underground and travel through four manhole vaults beneath the streets. Two manholes vaults were located in the middle of the street with two manhole vaults at the ends. The crew used the middle manhole vaults to oversee the route that the electrical cable would be placed. This crew was going to pull 2 runs of 3 phase 600mcm compact conductor Okinite MH-1162 through PB-2152, MH-1393 and to MH-1161 at least 1000 ft. Initially, 0.375 poly rope was laid along the inside of these underground pipe passages by the previous builders. The purpose of this poly rope inside these pipe passages was to be used to pull the metal cables through the piping conduits. The poly rope was connected to a metal cable at one end with the metal cable being approximately 1000 ft long. The metal cable was used for its strength to pull the bigger and heavier high voltage cables. The metal cable would eventually connect to the 2 runs of 3 phase 600mcm compact conductor Okinite MH-1162 through PB-2152, MH-1393 and to MH-1161. A Capstan, (a rotating machine used to control or apply force to another element) that was on one of their trucks was the machine that pulled the rope within the pipe. The Capstan pulled the yellow rope and the rope pulled the steel cable through the pipe. Approximately seventy feet of metal cable was laid out unbounded and on the ground at the feeding end. Flash blankets were laid out at the bottom of these manhole vaults in order to minimize potential exposure to energized circuits. The seven employees were in position for the task. Two employees were at the receiving end which is also the location of the truck that had the Capstan. Two more employees were overseeing on the two manholes mid distance from end to end, and the last three employees were at the other end that fed the metal cable on to the pipe passage beneath. All employees had radios. The work begun at approximately 12:00 a.m. when there would be no traffic on the streets. The Capstan was winding the yellow rope and the cable was being pulled, when one employee saw the rope in the middle manhole tensioning up. This employee was about to report this immediately to the other employees. He was about to say "hold and pull" when at that instant he saw a snag on the rope, the rope became loose. He thought of resetting the rollers when he heard on the radio someone said "two men down". Employee #1 and #2, located at the metal cable feeding end, were struck by the metal cable. The poly rope may have gotten stuck somewhere along the pipeline beneath or at the entrance of the feeding end and then got unbounded. This generated a tensed pull on the metal cables shooting the metal cables through the pipes. The metal cables shot its way through the pipes and created a tail whipped effect that struck Employee #1 and #2 on the cable feeding end. Both employees sustained serious injuries. One employee stated that he may have sustained injuries from an energized circuit that touched the steel cable. He also stated that this may have created the puncture wounds below his left ear, upper side right leg, and lower front shin. The employer and other employees tested this metal cable immediately and it was not energized. Both employees were transported to a medical center, where they underwent treatment and were then hospitalized for their injuries