The herald., 1897-07-03
ADEADLY WIRE
Electric Lineman Instantly
Killed on Spring St.
FRANK MATEE THE VICTIM
THE ACCIDENT OCCURS AT THE
TOP OF A.. POLE
FRANK M'ATEE THE VICTIM
The Victim Was a Trusted Employe.
A Member Of the Odd Eel
lows and 2. M. G. A.. es,sa

The perilous live wire, charged with
terrific current of electricity. claimed
another victim for its own yesterday
afternoon and Frank McAtee, a line
man employed by the Los Angeles
Lighting company, lies dead as a re-
suit Of his contact with this mysterious
force. The accident which resulted so
sadly took place at 4:3O o'clock just op-
posite the Bullard block on North Spring
street and in plain view of scores Of
people, who saw the man as he died
suspended from the top of lighting
pole, but were unable to render any as.
sistance.
Yesterday afternoon McAtee was
working on the lighting company's
wires on Spring street He was man of
long experience and had perhaps grown
a little careless, and it was owing to an
unfortunate lack of precaution that the
accident occurred One of the COM
pany's rules is to the effect that all en-
ployes shall wear rubber gloves when
working with wires which are charged
with electricity. They are very clumsy,
however, and hard to work with, SO
put on a pair of leather gloves instead
With this covering upon his hands
he mounted the pole and strapped him
self securely to the top of it. Then he
climbed out on one of the crossbars and
began his work of tightening a loose
wire. There were several persons stand
ing underneath. watching him. He
seemed to be having some difficulty
with, the wire and was seen to attempt
to shift his position. A second later he
dropped down from the crossbar and his
body fell across two wires, His right
hand was tightly clinched around an,
other wire and dark stream of smoke
which began to shoot upward told that
circuit between his body and two
deadly wires had been formed. There
was no outcry and not sound was
made by the line man. His head
dropped over against the crossbar and
his mouth fell open.
Almost an instant later hundred peo-
pie filled the street and blockaded the
sidewalk with their eyes fixed upward,
horror-stricken. An alarm was sounded
and telephone message was sent to the
police station for the patrol wagon.
J. w. Berge, line foreman for the COM
pany, was notified and hurried to the
spot. He climbed to the top of the pole
and loosening the hand which still
gripped the wire in death, undid the
straps by which the body was sus-
pended to the pole and then; with the
assistance of T. w. Bracken, another
employe, lowered it carefully into the
stretcher in the patrol wagon, which had
now arrived.
The trip to the receiving hospital was
made as rapidly as possible. Several
physicians were summoned by tele-
phone and few minutes later Drs. Ha-
gan, Orme, Morrison and Hagadom were
all working over the body in the hope
that some life was left and that resusci-
tation might be possible. Their efforts
were in vain, for the man had passed be-
yond all possibility of ever reviving, and
from the indications it would seem that
death must have been instantaneous
Only one Of the points of contact on.
McAtee's body could be found and, that.
was where the current entered by his
right hand. The thumb was nearly
burned off where it had touched the
wire. 1t could not be learned where the
current left the body. When the corpse
was brought into the hospital the face
was blackened and the neck terribly
swollen.
McAtee was 80 years of age unmar-
ried and lived at 621 South Hope street.
He has been in the employ of the cleo
trio lighting company for. the past
eighteen months and has given perfect
satisfaction. His mother and sister live
at Hiawatha, Kan. They were Informed
of his death last night by telegraph
He was member of the Odd Fellows
society and also of the Y NJ C. A. and
was well liked by those who knew him.
The body was removed to Orr G. Hines
undertaking parlors and an inquest will
be held today.