The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1900-10-30
SAM JoHANNAViTz MEETS WITH
INSTANT DEATH.
Several Other Men Severely Shocked-A
Night of Trouble With Overcharged
Wires.

One man was instantly killed and sew
eral others were severely shocked by
wires of the Hawaiian Electric Co.
early this morning. The lines are said
to have been crossed by wires OF the
government station, which would make
the voltage over 1,000 At the electric
light station the man in charge had
most exciting time with his machinery,
and the strain was not relieved until
Deputy Sheriff Chillingworth tele-
phoned to the government station and
had the current turneu off, leaving
many places in darkness.
Samuel Johannavitz, a Pole, was the
man killed. He was chief baker at the
New England bakery and was well
known as Polish interpreter at the
police court. Poor fixtures appear to
have been the cause of his receiving the
shock.
The unfortunate man had an electric
lamp which he used to look in his ovens
while baking bread. 1t was an or
dinary incandescent lamp, fastened on
the end of a stick of iron. At the point
where the wires met the pole the non,
conducting material appears to have
worn off, so that the current entered the
iron and ran through the bakers body
to the wet cement floor on which he
was standing.
Johnnnavitz had an oven full of
bread at the time of the accident,
and he was holding the light, prepar-
ing to see how the baking was progress
ing. Suddenly he gasped, threw up his
hands and fell dead The electricity
burned his wrist to the bone. Death
evidently came instantaneously, for he
never moved after the first gasp
Manager Gartley of the Hawaiian
| Electric Company denied this morning
! the possibility that Johannavitz got
more than about hundred volts. God
ley thought it possible that the dead
man had been afflicted with heart
disease and had succumbed to a small
shock of about 110 volts
| Investigations made by the police in
dicate very different state of affairs
| however, and an inquiry is being made
this afternoon by coronors jury. De-
putty Sheriff Chillingworth was tele-
phoned for Immediately after the ac-
cident, and he summoned Gartley as a
1 witness to tell about the conditions or
the electric company's lines last night
AT the power house the man in charge
was having time of thrilling excite.
ment when Chillingworth went there
The lamps had burned out, and ther,
was such powerful current, from
somewhere that he was afraid to &c
near ene Of the engines. Great balls O.
electricity were flying from the machin,
and for time disaster seemed likely
The engineer got broom and ueinl
the handle as a pole, he managed tC
turn some switches. Deputy Chilling.
worth telephoned to the government
power house, asking that the curren
be turned off and this was done, leav
ing the police station and other public
places in darkness Already reports o
other trouble were coming in, and tn,
deputy declared that it was a matter o
life and death.
In Nolte's restaurant Hermann Kru
ger received very severe shock. H
was turning a switch by which tn
electric fan is controlled A strong cur
rent entered his body and almost lai
him out. Kruger gave a yell of pail
and let the switch alone. He says tina
the current produced great pain, an
that the current must have been YER
strong.
: A telephone message was sent to tn
: police station that a man had been Kill
ed in Nolte's place by the electric wire:
: At about the same time there came an
! other report from the Judd building. .
Chinese boy was severely shocked Will
testing the elevator machinery.
The inquest began at one o'clock th
afternoon. DR.. Emerson testified tha
he had examined the deceased, an
thought that the cause of death wa
electrocution.
= Mr. Gartley was the second witnes
l called. He had heard of no unusu;
conditions existing in his light systel
last night, nothing out of the ordinaI
= having been reported to him. The maj
! ager gave may details about the wire
a ! for the benefit of the jurors. 1t
: claimed that one of the company
y !. wires was grounded, and that tn
Il might have caused the extra strength
current.