ECN Forum Forums General Topics of the Trade General Discussion Area Son Electrocuted-faulty GFI?

meg:

I send you my condolances and hope that through finding answers to the cause of your son's electrocution, other lives may be saved.

I am neither an electrician nor an attorney. That said, my 2 cents:

Especially because you mentioned that your son "...left 2 little ones to carry on..." it might be important for you to not discuss this in a public forum. I realize that no amount of compensation will ever bring back your son, but for the future of his children, you might want to check with your attorney.

A Google search came up with an attorney in Texas as the first listing: http://www.cliffroberts.com/electrocution.htm -- I know nothing about the firm; I'm passing along the information based on your User Profile showing that you are in Texas.

The lack of answers probably exacerbates your grief, and I wish to apologize in advance if I have added in any way to your pain.

You are fairly close to Fort Worth. If you have any thoughts of litigation, contact a good personal injury law firm. They will have connections with forensic labs etc.
A & M is an excellent facility but I doubt they will be willing to take sides in litigation.

Your progeny....in your own home. A true tragedy. You have my sincere condolences.

Thanks for the concern-his widow has an attorney (from Dallas)to handle the case. The machine is being evaluated by a PHD electrical engineer expert at A&M.

My questions are of general nature due to all the variables involved - I suppose there is no one answer, just different scenarios.

You might also pass along any pieces of information to the attorney that you come across. While they have a lot of resources, they can't be everywhere all at once and often doing some of the leg work for researching possible scenarios can reduce the time (and therefore the cost) that's required to gather information for a case.

There are some cautions that are prudent: such as don't assert guilt, culpability, etc. Don't reveal names, etc. of involved parties unless you want to put the attorney's name as a contact point for any info to be sent privately (which anything that asserts potential cause, effect, culpability, etc. should fall into that category). Also, remember that anything seen here is public even if there are usernames that don't immediately reveal identities. Mostly, don't jeopardize your daughter-in-law's legal position nor hinder the official investigation and offer all insight gained to the attorney to pursue through official means.

Dear Meg,

I wish you and your family well in this time..I thought of this post today at work as I installed some safety items on a machine.I always try to think of the time someone else comes in contact with my work.I offer no explanation, Other than I agree with Bjarney, that cord was probably the culprit and the Gfci would not see the contact...My best to your family....

Sincerely

mlk682

Thank you MLK & all for the postings...If making someone just alittle more aware of possible consequences to yourself and others....I at least feel I am maybe doing something positive.

My husband is also an electrician & this has hit him especially hard...I am sure that there is not a second at work, that this incident hasn't crossed his mind. You all work safe & God bless.

Meg,

What can I say that has not already been said? My condolences to you from this side of the Atlantic.