Electrocution, also known as electric shock or electrical injury, occurs when someone comes into direct contact with an electrical current or energy source. The result is electricity flowing through the body, causing a range of injuries including death, or in some cases, no injury at all. Damage sustained by an electrocuted person depends on the strength of the current, the way it travels through their body, and the promptness of treatment received. The most common electric shock injuries are burns, but internal damage to the heart, brain or muscles is frequent after higher voltage shocks. Approximately 1,000 people in the U.S. are killed from electrical injury every year. Most of these deaths occur in work-related accidents. If you or a family member has been injured or killed by an electric shock in California, please contact an attorney immediately.

Electric Shock: How Injury Occurs
Electrocution happens when direct contact occurs between a person and electricity. As a result of the contact, the electrical current moves through and has an effect on different parts of the body, depending on the location and strength of the incident. Serious injury can occur if the electric current travels to vital organs and/or delicate areas of the body. Here are 3 main areas commonly damaged by electrical shock:

• Heart: Electrical current can cause cardiac arrest.
• Nerve, muscles and tissues: Electrical contact can destroy muscle, nerve or tissue structures.
• Contact site/Skin: Burns result from direct contact with the source of electricity.

The degree of injury sustained after an electric shock injury depends on:

• The path the current travels
• The amount of voltage
  • Less than 500 volts is considered low-voltage and normally does not cause significant injury.
  • More than 500 volts is considered high-voltage and can cause significant injury.
• The type of current (AC, alternating current, or DC, direct current)

Electrocution Causes
For adults, most electric shock incidents occur at work, although they can also happen at home. Electrocution is a serious occupational hazard for people working in construction and restaurant sites. The presence of live and exposed electricity, active outdoor power lines and metal constructs together, water and multiple electrical outlets together, and a host of other occupational hazards contribute greatly to these work-site risks.

Children are generally exposed to electric shock while unsupervised and exploring the home. Standard household currents are in 110-220 volts, and as a result, serious electric shock injuries among children are rare. Wall outlets account for 15% of child electrocution injuries.

Causes of electric shock include, but are not limited to:

• Unintentional or accidental with high-voltage power line, as in a construction or car accident
• Combination of water on the floor and using an electrical outlet, as in unsafe commercial kitchen or industrial plant environment
• Accidental contact between metal and electricity, as in ladder, machine or metal rail contact with exposed electrical current at a construction site
• Electrical arc flashes from power lines
• Accidental contact with exposed electrical sources, such as an appliance or wiring
• Lightning

Electrical Shock Symptoms
As stated, burns are the leading symptom of electrical shock. However, sometimes electrocution victims may have no readily apparent or outside injuries. Symptoms of electric shock include:

• Burns, most severe at the point of electrical contact and where the person was sitting or standing.
• Cardiac Arrest
• Respiratory failure
• Injury to the spine or other internal injuries if a person has been literally thrown by the current.
• Unconsciousness
• Headaches
• Hearing Impairment
• Heart arrhythmia
• Numbness or tingling
• Seizures
• Weakness
• Muscle pain or contraction
• Broken bones from point of contact or being thrown
• Deformity at the point of contact

Electrocution Treatment
Any time a person has received a high-voltage shock, medical attention should be sought immediately. The speed and quality of medical resuscitation saves lives. For low-voltage electrical shocks, burns should be treated according to their severity, and all effort should be made to prevent infection. Survival is likely if electrocution did not cause cardiac arrest or severe burns.

If you or a loved one has been the victim of electric shock, you should contact an attorney to learn your rights. If you are in California, please call the lawyers at Greenberg & Rudman LLP toll-free at 1-800-ALAWPRO (1-800-252-9776). We will help you understand your rights and seek compensation for your suffering. Please call us now.