26.05.2026

Another man electrocuted

A man has died after coming into contact with overhead power lines in Staffordsville, Kentucky, on Friday evening.

The man, Jonathan ‘Jon’ Brown, 48, was the owner of the Kentucky Pool Company and a power washing business and was working at the Foothills Communications facility, pressure washing the building at a height of around 10 metres. A crew from the Oil Springs Fire and Rescue arrived to find him in the platform and still in contact with the power lines.

After cordoning off the area, they had to wait until three power lines were disabled by AEP-Kentucky Power. A standby generator belonging to Foothills was also disabled to prevent any power back feed.

Oil Springs Fire & Rescue issued the following statement on Friday night: ”At 6:34pm this evening, our department received an alert from Paintsville/Johnson County E-911 regarding a male individual who came into contact with live power lines at Foothills Communications in Staffordsville.”

“Upon arrival of the first units, it was determined the male was in a manlift basket, 30-35 feet in the air, and still in contact with the live power lines. The area was secured, including the closure of KY-40 in both directions.”

“AEP-Kentucky Power was notified and disabled all three power lines. As a precautionary measure, the Foothills standby generator was also disabled to prevent any power back feed, resulting in a minor disruption to some Foothills services.”

“Once the power was secured, the worker was removed from the lines and brought to the ground, where the Johnson County Coroner's Office pronounced him deceased. The incident is under investigation by the Johnson County Sheriff's Office, the Johnson County Coroner's Office, and Oil Springs Fire & Rescue.”

“Assistance was provided on scene by WR Castle Fire and Rescue and Johnson County Constable CD-2 for traffic control, Paintsville Fire and EMS, and Paintsville/Johnson County Emergency Management for resource support.”

Foothills Communications also issued a statement: “ It is with deep sadness that Foothills Communications acknowledges a tragic accident that occurred on our property this evening, resulting in the loss of life of Jonathan Brown of West Liberty.”

“Our thoughts and heartfelt condolences are with Jonathan’s family, friends, and loved ones during this incredibly difficult time. We extend our deepest sympathies to all who knew and cared for him.”

Vertikal Comment

This sort of incident happens all too frequently, in spite of all the training, bulletins, advisories and articles such as this.
It is tragic, and not only such a waste of a good life, but it also impacts so many other people. In this case, Jon Brown has a wife and four children, and a large extended family. The impact on them is beyond measure, those working at Foothills Communications will also be traumatised and upset.. We all need to raise our game and spread the message.

In case any of you have not read and digested it, here is a link to the IPAF advice and good practice guide. Just click here to go directly to the page – once there you can select your preferred language – so no excuse.