Five Workers at Indiana Wal-Mart Store Injured by 12,000-Volt Shock

By Mary Mitchell

Published on August 29, 2006

The men were working in an electrical service room, and apparently a wire or piece of metal contacted a live electrical panel.

Scott Shelton, 35, of Anderson, and Steve Abbott, 27, of Otterbein, were listed in critical condition at Indianapolis’ Wishard Memorial Hospital. A third man was critically injured, but his name was not released pending notification of his relatives.

The electrical panel that some of the men were working on was live, with about 12,400 volts and 400 amps running through it. Van Buren Township Fire Chief Tim Deckard said at the accident scene that apparently one of the panel’s wires had come loose, causing an arc of electricity that injured all five men. One of the injured men described seeing fire shooting out of the panel.

The power to the fusebox was still live following the accident, and the victims could not be helped by emergency personnel until utility Duke Energy’s crew rushed to the area to turn off the power.

The Wal-Mart where the accident took place lies just west of an existing Wal-Mart on West Second Street in Bloomington.

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