DWP Worker Burned After Touching Line
A Los Angeles Department of Water and Power mechanic was severely burned early Sunday in Sylmar when he touched a high-voltage line while repairing a power pole that had been hit by a car, authorities said.
Ron Hilmer, 35, of Acton received third-degree burns on his hands, arms, back and stomach, DWP spokesman Ed Freudenburg said. Hilmer was in critical condition Sunday at Sherman Oaks Community Hospital.
Freudenburg said Hilmer was part of a crew summoned to repair a utility pole struck by an auto late Saturday at San Fernando Road and Sayre Street. The occupants were removed from the car safely, but Hilmer somehow touched the 34,500-volt line about 12:30 a.m., Freudenburg said.
Hilmer’s accident triggered an outage affecting about 600 homes and four commercial customers for 40 minutes, Freudenburg said.
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