WELLESLEY, MASS. (WHDH) - A man was hospitalized after he received an electrical shock while hanging holiday lights in Wellesley Wednesday morning, police said.
At around 10 a.m., emergency crews responded to Falmouth Circle after a contractor, hired by a resident to install lights on a tree, received a life-threatening shock and was not breathing, according to the Wellesley Police Department.
The 911 caller said the man was unconscious and appeared to be having a seizure, police said. The dispatcher instructed the caller to perform CPR until first responders arrived.
When police officers and firefighters arrived, they hooked the man up to a defibrillator and continued CPR, as he appeared to be in sudden cardiac arrest, according to police.
The man regained a pulse and was taken to Newton Wellesley Hospital, before he was transferred to Massachusetts General Hospital, police said.
Investigators determined the large pole the man was using to string the holiday lights may have come into contact with an electrical line on top of the utility pole, causing the electrocution, the police department said.
“It was a power wash company, some young guys who were just trying to make some extra money for the holidays, hang up some Christmas lights around a pretty tall evergreen tree,” said Wellesley Police Officer Michael Pino, who was among the first to respond to the scene.
“Happened to be a little too close to the primary wire on the telephone pole, and that’s where we believe the electricity came down the metal pole,” he continued.
The incident remains under investigation by police, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, and the Wellesley Municipal Light Plant.
“When you see something like this, especially around the holidays, it kind of really hits home thinking how quickly something can go from good to bad, and we hope he does pull through,” said Officer Tim Gover.
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