Bootheel man electrocuted in Thursday accident

CARUTHERSVILLE, Mo. -- A 21-year old contractor was killed in an electrocution accident on Thursday morning after the bucket truck he was in made contact with a high-power line.

According to Caruthersville Police Chief Chris Riggs, at approximately 7:20 a.m., Caruthersville resident Roger Forrester was using a boom on his truck to lift a load of plywood onto the roof of Pylate's Machine Shop, located at 815 W. 3rd St., when the boom hit a main power line, electrocuting Forrester.

Caruthersville fire and police departments and EMS personnel responded to the scene immediately following the accident.

Forrest was taken to Pemiscot Memorial Hospital in Caruthersville where he was pronounced dead.

According to Mike Cleary, representative for Ameren UE, the power line that was hit carried 34,000 volts. The line then hit the ground, causing a hole to be burned in an ATMOS gas line. Steven Green, Manager of Public Relations for ATMOS energy, said that the gas burned for a brief period before it was extinguished.

Power was knocked out to 491 customers according to Cleary. The power was restored after around 45 minutes. Gas services were cut off to 13 customers according to Green. The customers affected had to have their meters turned off while repairs were made.

"I have only seen the electricity burn a hole in the gas line three times in my career (27 years)," Green said, "The electric current went through the ground and burned a small hole in the pipe."

Cleary stated that the 34,000-volt line was a "large" line. He stated some lines only carry 12,000 volts but that this was a significant line. Traffic on Third Street was diverted for most of the day as utility workers made repairs.

Pertinent address:

815 W. Third St., Caruthersville, Mo.