Dog gets electrocuted at event

[brother]

What do you think of this? They still did not mentioned what exactly caused it the death, just that it came from 'underground'. i wont be attending any event anytime soon.

Dog dies after being electrocuted at Washington State Fairgrounds holiday event

A dog was reportedly electrocuted and died at a Washington State Fair holiday event on Friday, leading the grounds to enhance safety measures.

komonews.com

 

[ptonsparky]

I am surprised we don't see this more often. We probably all have at least mental pictures of what we've seen waiting for the right timing.

 

[zbang]

Sigh, from a safety analysis perspective, that article is useless. It's not hard to do event wiring safely, and I at least hardly ever see something that would cause a problem. OTOH, there are probably lots of site that have never heard of the NEC.

 

[roger]

I remember in NC a few years back Fairs and the like were not inspected by Electrical Inspectors but the Dept of Labor. They were good at what they did (Elevators, Boilers, etc...) but were not Electrical inspectors which I would think would be the correct people to inspect them.

Ohio had a child die a few years ago.

Ohio agriculture agency at fault in boy's 2003 death at Lake County Fair, judge rules

Updated 1:30 p.m. family photoGreyson YoeCOLUMBUS -- An Ohio Court of Claims judge ruled this week that the Ohio Department of Agriculture officials are liable for the 2003 death of an 8-year-old Madison boy electrocuted at the Lake County Fair...

www.cleveland.com

 

[Besoeker3]

A little digression.
We lived on a farm in Scotland. Now and again we had one or two cattle beast that had to be kept in isolation. For that we erected a temporary electric fence. As a lad I used to "test" it. But my dog decided to sniff my hand. I had rubber boots - the dog didn't. He and I had one helluva shock...........

 

[zbang]

It needs many inspectors- building/structure, electric, health/food-safety, labor regulations, consumer protection, etc. It also needs states & localities to require good practices and not let dodgy setups operate.

(I recall maybe 45 years ago being told by someone with the Strates Shows that some carnivals wouldn't stop in Maryland because they had a good inspection program; Strates thought this was just fine., they wanted to be known for safe rides and honest games. From what I've read, they pretty much are.)

 

[tom baker]

I live 45 miles away, have been to many events there. The fairgrounds where this happened are privately owned. It was likely caused by energized metal, probably a handhole, some call this “stray voltage”.
There was snow and rain around the time of the dogs death.
This was during a holiday lighting event.
There should be some follow up investigation to this, by the AHJ. If I see anything I will followup here

 

[Todd0x1]

I live 45 miles away, have been to many events there. The fairgrounds where this happened are privately owned. It was likely caused by energized metal, probably a handhole, some call this “stray voltage”.
There was snow and rain around the time of the dogs death.
This was during a holiday lighting event.
There should be some follow up investigation to this, by the AHJ. If I see anything I will followup here

That was going to be my guess without even reading the article. Handhole full of water with a metal lid that's not bonded. Same thing killed someone in Vegas a few years ago.

 

[acrwc10]

We went there last year and it is really set up to attract families with kids, terrible what happened but thankful it wasn’t a child.

 

[tortuga]

Tragic I wonder if there will be a civil suit?
The spokesperson with the state fairgrounds:

we found the source underground. We have done a comprehensive review of the grounds and added additional enhanced safety measures, to ensure the safety of our guests and staff.

So they are admitting there was a problem, probably will get settled out of court.

 

[jetlag]

I remember one time when I was a teen , I my leg rubbed up against on of those car axles that they used at the fair for tent stakes and it shocked me pretty hard . I don't remember seeing a wire or any metal attached to it . I had pants on , so it came through that to get me .