Man Shocked By Fallen Power Line During Brush Fire

As crews tried to take down a brush fire in Hancock County, a local firefighter comes across a fallen power line, and ends up in the hospital.

Folks living on Mountaintop Lane, a mile and a half north of New Cumberland, were shocked to see flames coming from the woods near their homes.

"I drove up here, and saw it, and called 911," said Corey Snider, a resident of Mountaintop Lane. "I panicked pretty much, I didn't know how fast it would spread or anything."

But firefighters said it spread fast.

New Cumberland firefighters said the flames turned into a four-acre brush fire.

And because it was about two and a half miles into the woods, crews couldn't get even get to the flames.

"We were on scene for about an hour and a half before we exactly found out which road would get us to the fire," said Benjamin Boyles, a firefighter for the New Cumberland Fire Department.

Boyles said once crews started fighting the flames, they noticed a power line had fallen.

"In my discussion with the power company, it's some type of transformer that they put in," said Boyles. "And they were discussing with me that they think it might've shorted out."

Then Boyle's worst fear came true, he got word from crews down over the hill, that a firefighter had been shocked.

"He was in the process of fighting the brush fire with a metal indian can, walked by the wire, and the electricity jumped from the wire to the indian can and gave him an electrical shock," said Boyles.

Crews carried the injured Hanover Township firefighter to an ambulance, and Boyles said he was conscious and moving.

Firefighters immediately decided to disconnect the power from several other power lines, for fear that the flames would cause more lines to come falling down.

"Our biggest concern was the power lines coming down and electrocuting the workers," said Boyles.

Boyles said it took about four hours to get the flames under control.

The injured firefighter was taken to Weirton Medical Center and is in stable condition tonight.

Natalie Pasquarella, NEWS9