Community Corner
13-Year-Old Boy Nearly Electrocuted Thursday Night
A 13-year-old boy was nearly electrocuted while playing with an outlet in his family's apartment on Sumneytown Pike late Thursday night in Upper Gwynedd. He was flown via PennStar for treatment to St. Christopher's Hospital for Children
A 13-year-old boy from Upper Gwynedd was flown by PennStar for treatment to St. Christopher's Hospital for Children after being severely injured in an electrical mishap in his bedroom Thursday night.
responded to a fire investigation call at 11:30 p.m. at 988 Sumneytown Pike Apt. 6, according to Upper Gwynedd Fire Chief John Scheiter. The apartment is located above a barber shop.
"It was initially dispatched as an investigation. Further information given was that there had been a fire as well. That wasn't the case," Scheiter said.
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He said the youth was nearly electrocuted via an outlet in his bedroom.
Scheiter said fire crews found a scorched outlet that had tripped the breaker.
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A reader familiar with the case said the youth was experimenting with electromagnets and a non-grounded receptacle arced, knocking the boy semiconscious.
Upon arrival, EMS personnel from Volunteer Medical Service Corps of Lansdale was treating the victim, Scheiter said. Scheiter said a family lives in the apartment and the boy's mother was present and called in the electrocution.
"EMS was on scene and retrieved the patient. EMS advised me they were flying the patient and we had set up a landing zone for PennStar at Calvary Baptist Church off Valley Forge Road on Sumneytown Pike," Scheiter said. "The patient was combative and they had to sedate him prior to the flight to CHOP."
Upper Gwynedd Fire Co. personnel secured outlet so that way nobody else could get injured.
Upper Gwynedd Fire Marshal Ken Nolan said the boy was playing with the outlet.
"Apparently, he was tearing stuff apart and he handled the electric the wrong way, and put something in the outlet," Nolan said. "The electric service blew the fuses and the power was shut off. We discovered where the outlet was shorted, disconnected it and turned the power back on."
Upper Gwynedd Fire left the scene around 12:30 a.m.
"We remained on location to be sure everything was secured and safe," he said.
Upper Gwynedd Township Police assisted at the scene and took over the investigation as a police matter.
The boy was released from the hospital Friday.
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