Inspection Detail

Inspection: 310494539 - Southern California Edison Company

Inspection Information - Office: Long Beach District Office

Investigation Summary

At approximately 5:00 a.m. on February 20, 2009, an employee was performing a regularly assigned task of splicing electrical wires in the attempt to repair an electrical power transmission wire. The employee was on a repair crew assigned to reconnect three energized 16,000 volt electrical power transmission wires that had been severed. The employee had spliced two of the wires together without incident, when he brought the two ends of the third wire together with his gloved hands, to make the final positioning cut, an electric arc flash occurred causing second and third degree burns to his face, resulting in his hospitalization for three days to under go skin grafts. The injured employee was working with/in close proximity to another lineman and his foreman. Interviews were conducted of the injured employee and his foreman. The investigation concluded that the third wire had looped over the second wire on the load side a few hundred yards from the site of the severing and was not visible to the repair crew in the darkness. The employee was not wearing face or eye protection, at the time of the injury.

Keywords: BURN, ELECTRIC ARC, REPAIR, PPE, FIRE, STRUCK BY, FACE