Abstract: A journeyman line-clearance tree trimmer, who was the crew foreman, was trimming tree branches away from a three-phase, 12.47-kilovolt (7200 volts to ground) overhead power line. He was saddled into a tree located in the back yard of a residence. A coworker was on the ground, dragging cut branches to the front of the property. The coworker entered the back yard and heard a buzzing noise. He looked up towards the foreman. He saw a branch touching the power line and the foreman's torso. Smoke was billowing from the foreman's chest. The foreman was electrocuted. It was later determined that he had been about 6 feet away from the power line at the time of the accident. The branch he had cut was about 1 inch in diameter at its base, and it had been cut halfway through with the pruner with the remainder ripped away from the tree.