08-01-2008, 11:20 AM
This guys brother must live in Dallas.
A man who may have been trying to steal copper wiring was severely burned on top of a utility pole this morning, Dallas Fire-Rescue said. His rescue was hindered because his flesh had melded with the metal on the pole.
A Dallas Fire-Rescue dispatcher said a passerby called about 5:30 a.m. to report that a man was on top of a utility pole and that wires were sparking above in the 800 block of Regal Row near the Irving border. Police said there had also been reports of power outages in the area.
When crews arrived, they found a person, who was burning, between transformers on the pole, police said.
Dallas Fire-Rescue spokeswoman Sherrie Lopez said the man had been hit with about 7,000 volts, possibly twice. The rescue of the man was hindered because his flesh had adhered to the metal components on the pole. Much of his clothes had either "burned off or blown off," she said.
Crews were able to reach the man using a ladder from a fire truck and he was lowered shortly before 7 a.m. and taken to Parkland Memorial Hospital. He suffered third-degree burns and was burned on about 50 percent of his body, Ms. Lopez said.
"There is no amount of copper that is worth the pain this man is going to have to endure," she said.
Oncor confirmed that the man was not an employee or a contractor for the company.
Copper thefts have been a pervasive problem throughout North Texas as the price of copper attracts those looking to make a quick buck. Thieves steal copper from a number of items, including street lights, air-conditioning units and electrical transformers, and trade in the valuable metal for cash at recycling businesses.
The thefts have affected businesses large and small. Oncor says the company suffered about $1 million in losses from such thefts last year.
Some local business owners have taken to sleeping at their stores and guarding their rooftops to prevent such thefts. In July, a business owner's son fatally shot a man on the roof of Bargain Town Variety & Furniture store in Garland. Police said thieves had targeted the store twice in two days before the shooting. During one incident about $6,000 worth of copper was stolen from the air-conditioning units.
A man who may have been trying to steal copper wiring was severely burned on top of a utility pole this morning, Dallas Fire-Rescue said. His rescue was hindered because his flesh had melded with the metal on the pole.
A Dallas Fire-Rescue dispatcher said a passerby called about 5:30 a.m. to report that a man was on top of a utility pole and that wires were sparking above in the 800 block of Regal Row near the Irving border. Police said there had also been reports of power outages in the area.
When crews arrived, they found a person, who was burning, between transformers on the pole, police said.
Dallas Fire-Rescue spokeswoman Sherrie Lopez said the man had been hit with about 7,000 volts, possibly twice. The rescue of the man was hindered because his flesh had adhered to the metal components on the pole. Much of his clothes had either "burned off or blown off," she said.
Crews were able to reach the man using a ladder from a fire truck and he was lowered shortly before 7 a.m. and taken to Parkland Memorial Hospital. He suffered third-degree burns and was burned on about 50 percent of his body, Ms. Lopez said.
"There is no amount of copper that is worth the pain this man is going to have to endure," she said.
Oncor confirmed that the man was not an employee or a contractor for the company.
Copper thefts have been a pervasive problem throughout North Texas as the price of copper attracts those looking to make a quick buck. Thieves steal copper from a number of items, including street lights, air-conditioning units and electrical transformers, and trade in the valuable metal for cash at recycling businesses.
The thefts have affected businesses large and small. Oncor says the company suffered about $1 million in losses from such thefts last year.
Some local business owners have taken to sleeping at their stores and guarding their rooftops to prevent such thefts. In July, a business owner's son fatally shot a man on the roof of Bargain Town Variety & Furniture store in Garland. Police said thieves had targeted the store twice in two days before the shooting. During one incident about $6,000 worth of copper was stolen from the air-conditioning units.
Will it blend? That is the question.