Tourist, 33, electrocuted in Thailand in front of girlfriend after slipping on wet pavement and grabbing hold of faulty streetlight
An American tourist was killed by an electric shock after he slipped and grabbed a faulty streetlight for support in Thailand.
The 33-year-old victim from New York was walking to a Phuket restaurant with his girlfriend when he slipped on a muddy pavement on Thursday evening (5 December). As he reached out to grab a streetlight to steady himself he was electrified and fell to the ground.
Police believe an exposed wire touched the wet metal, extending the current. The tourist then touched the surface and was killed.
Police Major Thanom Thongpaen of the Thalang District Police Station said officers received a report at 9:30pm. Medics arrived and rushed the victim to the Thalang Hospital, where he was later pronounced dead.
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A friend of the victim's girlfriend said the man had flown in from America around a week ago to visit his long-distance partner, whom he has not seen in six years. The man was of an American and Burmese nationality.
According to the Daily Mail, a local named Phiew said a customer informed him that someone had been electrocuted in front of the restaurant. He said: “I saw that the man had fallen, but his leg was still touching the pole. I tried to touch him but I was zapped myself. I managed to remove his leg from the streetlight before calling an ambulance.”
Officials from the Provincial Electricity Authority investigated the scene and found that the pole was carrying 220 volts of electricity. The power supply was temporarily cut off to prevent further accidents. They advised the residents to call the Highway District Office for repairs.