Massachusetts

Man gets life-threatening electric shock hanging holiday lights on Wellesley tree

A person who called 911 to report the injury said he was unconscious and didn't appear to be breathing, and when police officers arrived, they found him in apparent cardiac arrest

Wellesley Police Department

Falmouth Circle in Wellesley, Massachusetts, where a man was shocked and hospitalized while hanging holiday lights on a tree Wednesday, Nov. 27, 2024.

A worker was seriously hurt when he received an electric shock while hanging holiday lights on a tree in Wellesley, Massachusetts, on Wednesday morning, police said.

The contractor was rushed to the hospital from Falmouth Circle with life-threatening injuries after the incident about 10 a.m., according to Wellesley police.

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The man was using a pole to string up the holiday lights and it came close to or touched an electrical line atop a utility pole, according to police, which gave him a shock.

A person who called 911 to report the injury said he was unconscious and didn't appear to be breathing, and when police officers arrived, they found him in apparent cardiac arrest.

Firefighters and police were able to restart the worker's heart by shocking him with a defibrillator. He was rushed to Newton Wellesley Hospital, than taken to Massachusetts General Hospital, police said.

OSHA, the federal work safety agency, is investigating what happened along with police and the Wellesley Municipal Light Plant.

"The Wellesley Police, Fire, and WMLP Departments extend our thoughts and prayers to the victim and his family during this tragic incident," police said in a statement.

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