06.11.2015

Working too close

Two men were injured earlier today in Port Charlotte, Florida after they came into contact with overhead power lines while trimming trees from a boom lift.
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The two men were working too close to live overhead power lines

The emergency services arrived to find the two men, one in his 40s and the other in his 50s, still in the platform clearly having been shocked. The power was shut down and the fire service used a rescue ladder to bring them down and send them off to hospital.
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The power lines were clearly visible

The two men - now identified as senior pastor Mark Coffey and youth pastor Calvin Kress - belong to the church and were trimming trees from the church grounds. We understand that they have received minor skin grafts and are due to be released from hospital just a few days after being admitted.

UPDATE

Mark Coffey, speaking with a local reporter said that they have been trimming the same trees for eight years and never had a problem, but in future will employ specialists and in the meantime will have the particular trees they were working on cut down, so no one risks doing the same thing in the future.