An employee with a tree company was electrocuted while on the job Monday, according to Acworth police.
The man, whose name was not released, died from his injuries at the scene in a residential area near Lake Allatoona. Some in the area said they had been concerned about how close the large trees were to power lines, but had been assured it was safe for workers to proceed.
Officers were called to a home on Academy Street in reference to a “person down,” according to Cpl. Eric Mistretta with Acworth police.
“Upon arrival, officers discovered that an employee from an independent tree service company had been electrocuted while cutting down trees,” Mistretta said in a statement.
Credit: Ben Hendren
Credit: Ben Hendren
Firefighters arrived to help remove the man’s body with ladder trucks, according to Cobb County fire Lt. Steve Bennett.
“Our role today was unfortunately a body recovery,” Bennett said. “The gentleman had been working in the tree and was electrocuted by the power lines. When our crews arrived, this was indeed a recovery and not a rescue.”
Roads in the area were closed during the investigation Monday afternoon, including Academy Street, Dallas Street and Beach Street, police said.
Residents told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution they had concerns about the tree cutting and began making phone calls early Monday. Several called the power company and city officials and were told permits were in place to do the work on a property recently purchased by someone who plans to build a new home, neighbors said.
“I heard a lot of commotion and I thought they had cut a tree wrong and it was about to land on my house,” Robyn Johnson said.
Johnson’s home is across the street from where the trees were being cut. She walked outside and smelled smoke. Some 75 feet in the air, she saw that a worker appeared to have hit a power line with a chain saw.
“I called 911 as it was happening,” she said. “The poor guy probably died within a minute.”
Another neighbor, Robert Carter, said the company appeared to be using safety measures prior to the man’s death.
“It’s just a shame,” he said.
