Lake Pleasant is a normally placid body of water, an Arizona lake, that lives up to its idyllic name. Sadly, on Sunday evening, July 12, 2020, a yet to be explained incident occurred at Lake Pleasant that resulted in one death and others being rushed to an area hospital.
People were enjoying a lazy albeit hot afternoon and evening at Lake Pleasant when an unexplained electrical discharge occurred in the water in an area known as Scorpion Bay. The source of the electric current in the water has yet to be determined by investigators.
Peoria, Arizona, emergency personnel were dispatched to the lake at about 6:30 in the evening, Lake Pleasant being about 45 miles north of Phoenix. Upon arrival, the EMTs were forced to wait about 15 minutes to enter the water to ensure that the electrical current in the lake has been stopped.
One individual who was in the lake at the time of the electrical discharge was killed. Two people were taken to an area hospital, one of them being treated and released. The second person transported to the hospital remained in critical condition as of Monday. Two people thought to be injured by the electrical current in the water refused treatment at the scene of the incident.
As of Monday afternoon, investigators were still unsure as to precisely how the lake water ended up electrified. Unfortunately, this type of situation is not as uncommon as people might immediately conclude.
Every year, a number of people end up injured and even killed as the result of electrocution in swimming pools and even at lakes. The incident at Lake Pleasant is only the latest example of such a catastrophic incident.
Another tragic case this summer involved an 11-year-old girl who died after she was electrocuted while swimming in a lagoon behind a home in Toms River, New Jersey. A few weeks before the Lake Pleasant incident,
Initial reports are that the child was swimming and using an inflatable raft with two of her friends when two of the girls touched the rail to a metal boat lift, sending an electric current through their equipment and causing the fatal injury.
In the New Jersey incident, three young girls were using an inflatable raft in the lagoon. Investigators concluded that that the girls touched the rail to a metal boat lift that somehow had become electrified. The electric current shot through the girls’ equipment.
Two of the girls were unharmed as a result of the current passing into their own equipment. A third girl was electrocuted and was pronounced dead after being transported to a local hospital. The specifics of how the metal boat lift became electrified remains under investigation.
While these two fatal accidents involving electrical currents occurred in natural bodies of water, these types of deadly incidents occur in swimming pools more frequently that most people might imagine. There are four underlying reasons for electrocutions in swimming pools:
- Faulty or defective underwater lighting
- Aging electrical wiring
- Use of sump pumps, pool vacuums, and power washers that are not grounded properly
- Electrical appliances like radios and televisions or associated extension cords being pulled or falling into a pool
Swimming pool electrocutions occur in a variety of locations each year. These include pools in private residences, pools at clubs and fitness centers, private community pools, and public pools.
In addition to fatal incidents caused by pool electrocutions, these types of accidents can result in serious and even debilitating injuries as well. For example, when a person is electrocuted in a pool, such an individual may be rendered unconscious and under water for an extended period of time. This can result in a prolonged lack of blood to the brain, resulting in permanent brain damage.
If you or a loved one have been injured in some type of accident associated with a pool, lake, pond, beachfront, or other body of water, a Doan Law Firm aquatic accident lawyer is ready to assist you. You can schedule an initial consultation any time that is convenient for you by calling (800) 349-0000. There is no charge for an initial consultation and case evaluation with an aquatic accident lawyer.
The Doan Law Firm charges no attorney fee unless we win for you.