Los Angeles Electrical Injury Attorneys

Electrocution Overview
Electrocution or electrical injuries happen instantaneously and without warning. The briefest contact between an exposed wire or disconnected circuit and a human being can cause a major injury requiring months and months of recovery and may result in permanent brain damage, organ damage, heart irregularities and even death.

Electrocution injuries are usually caused by electric shocks resulting from contact with a man-made, high-voltage source of electricity. Lightning strikes are extremely rare, but electricians or cable operators are constantly exposed to the possibility of electrocution, and in the home electrical injuries from defective appliances are more likely to cause injury than any thunder storm.

Types of Injuries Caused by Electrocution
There are two types of electrical injuries: high and low voltage. High-voltage electrocution injuries are caused by contact with an electrical source greater than 1000 volts; low-voltage injuries are caused by contact with an electrical source of less than 1000 volts.

Electrocution injuries often seem minimal upon visual inspection but tissue and nerve damage below the skin are frequent and serious effects of electrocution, often undetectable to the naked eye. As the electrical current travels through the body, it follows the path of least resistance- through the soft tissues and internal organs. Although the entrance and exit wounds are easily detectable as electrical burns, the current may also have destroyed nerves and permanently disrupted the function of the heart, brain and lungs.

Electric shocks can cause physical impact injuries such as contusions, sprains, cuts, fractures, broken bones, and brain or spine damage when the current violently propels the victim many feet from the current site.

Electrocution burns the skin at the areas of contact and exits the tissue between the two points. Electrical exposure may also cause unconsciousness, respiratory or heart failure, nervous system overload resulting in seizures or cardiac arrhythmia as well as headaches, hearing loss or impairment, numbness, tingling, temporary or permanent muscle weakness or muscle contraction and muscular pain or deformity. Electrocution injuries are also prone to certain complications such as infection, loss of limbs, kidney damage, electrolyte imbalances, dehydration and shock.

How Electrical Injuries Occur
Most electrical injuries occur in the workplace, although construction workers and electrical or cable professions have the highest risk. Lightning, the most dramatic source of electrocution is also the rarest cause of injury. Unfortunately, human negligence, inattention and failure to comply with proper safety regulations are to blame for most electrocution injuries. High-voltage power lines, electrical appliances, faulty or damaged wiring, frayed electrical cords, defective or broken machinery and lighting are common sources of electrocution injuries.

Electrical Injury Statistics

• Approximately 1000 people in the United States alone die annually as a result of electric shocks or electrocution.
• Power line accidents account for nearly 33% of fatal electrocutions.
• Electrocution burns are the leading electrical related injury, causing an average of 3000 victims in the United States each year.
• Children are victims of 20% of all electrical injuries in the United States.
• The ratio of men to women suffering from electrical injuries is 9:1.

• Electric Shock Injuries Suffered at Construction Sites
• Electrocution Injuries through Unwanted Exposure to Electricity
• Electrocution: An In Depth Look at Injuries