Man killed trying to saw through power line
June 28, 2009 10:30 AM
POND EDDY, N.Y. (AP) -- A New York man was fatally electrocuted early Saturday when he tried to cut through a downed power line with an industrial saw.
Sullivan County authorities say the accident happened in the presence of firefighters who had been guarding the fallen line.
They say 64-year-old Mieczyskaw Mil, of Pond Eddy, was drunk and ignored repeated orders to stay away from the cable.
County Public Safety Commissioner Dick Martinkovic says officials chased the man away from the line several times before he fetched the saw from his house.
The incident happened not long after midnight.
Authorities say the line fell in a storm and had been down for about seven hours while utility crews tended to damage elsewhere.
