A 16-year-old was nearly electrocuted during a game of hide and seek in the Tampa, Florida, area last week when his younger brother pulled him from the current.
According to a report from ABC Action News, the two brothers say they were playing manhunt, a game much like hide and seek. In an attempt to get to the roof to hide, 16-year-old Justin Martin says he jumped onto an air conditioning unit and grabbed a metal pole hoping to climb up to the roof.
Martin says that pole was filled with 220 V of electricity, and he thought he was paralyzed by the shock. Unable to move, he screamed for help.
His 13-year-old brother Dominic tried to pull his brother off the pole by grabbing his clothes but he said the electrical current was too strong. Not knowing what to do next, Dominic said he decided to tackle him, and they both fell back, breaking the hold.
Their mom, Grace Martin, said she talked to property managers about the pipe and was told it wasn't grounded properly, according to the news report. She was told that may be the reason why it shocked her son. Property managers have since covered that metal pole with PVC.
Withlacoochee River Electric Cooperative did a site survey of the area and said the equipment that shocked the teen didn't belong to the power company. Pasco County code enforcement would be responsible for checking it, the report said.
