I had a new helper who was working with me to install a ceiling outlet in a residential garage for an opener. Directly above was a bedroom where we planned to get a feed from an existing receptacle that backed up to a closet. From inside the closet, I pulled the carpet back and drilled a hole down with an 18" feeler bit so he would know where to cut in the box. I told him to cut the hole, then drill up into the wall by positioning his bit 2" away from where my hole was. Since all he could see was the bottom of the plywood sub floor, I told him to be very careful when drilling in case he was off the mark. I didn't want him to snag the carpet with the drill point.
He carefully drilled up until he almost popped through the sole plate of the wall and stopped. I had to pull out the existing box for the bedroom receptacle since we would have too many wires in it. Once I had it removed, I told him that I'd drop the cable down to him through the opening I had upstairs to work with. "Just watch for the cable and grab it when you see it", I said.
As I went to drop the cable through the hole, I found that he hadn't quite finished making it through the plate, so I reached down with my finger to clear out the wood chips in the hole.
Yep, you guessed it.....As soon as he saw something in the hole, he grabbed it with his needle-nose pliers. This ended up being the tip of my finger. He completely ripped the fingernail from my index finger.
In usual electrician fashion, I wrapped my gushing finger with toilet paper and electrical tape so we could finish the job. After that, he drove me to an urgent care clinic and they managed to bandage me up properly.
While he apologized profusely, I did have to wonder who was truly at fault here. I did tell him to watch for the cable and grab it. Maybe he took me too seriously.
My helper and I ended up being the best of friends after that and within a few years, he graduated to the level of mechanic and got his own truck. That was over 25 years ago and we still laugh about it every time we talk.
