Lakeside
A 19-year-old man who was burned over 90% of his body, after coming into contact with 138,000 volts of electricity, died early Friday, officials said.
Phillip Daniels of El Cajon was climbing on top of a San Diego Gas & Electric substation in Lakeside about 4 a.m. Thursday when he touched the high-voltage equipment.
The contact caused an explosion and triggered an alarm. An employee responding to the alarm found Daniels, clad only in tennis shoes; his clothing had burned off.
To reach the equipment, Daniels climbed an 8-foot-high barbed-wire fence in the southeast corner of the Los Coches substation at Lake Jennings Park and El Monte roads, an SDG&E; spokeswoman said. He then climbed atop a steel girder and touched the equipment that caused the explosion. Why he was on top of the substation is unknown.
The Sheriff’s Department is investigating, Detective William Campbell said.
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