State Park Peace Officer/Ranger

Department of Parks and Recreation

6/28/2010

Special Act Award (Gold)

On June 28, 2009, just before 10 p.m., a group of teenage friends were hanging out at the Rio Del Mar Beach in Santa Cruz County, when a large eucalyptus branch fell onto a high-voltage power line, knocking conductors and other equipment onto a grassy knoll. When the teenagers heard the loud noise and saw the sparks, they thought it was someone lighting fireworks. Then one of the teenagers spotted a fire, so they went up the hillside in an attempt to put out the flames. Unknowingly, one of the teenagers, a 17-year-old boy, walked directly into a high voltage power line. Witnesses said they saw a flash of light and the neighborhood lights went out. The boy was on the ground screaming in pain, but none of his friends could get him away from the wire because it was still charged with 12,000 volts of power. Someone called 911. Upon arriving at the scene, Mr. Sipes, who is also a part-time firefighter, and another Aptos firefighter determined they could not wait for the wires to be turned off, which is the normal policy in this type of situation. They both entered the electrically charged area and each grabbed one of the boy’s arms and pulled him out of the area to safety. The boy was transported to a local medical center where he was listed in serious condition with second and third-degree burns to 15 percent of his body.