A 16-year-old boy from Fruit Heights, Utah, has died after he was electrocuted and fell roughly 60 feet from a Rocky Mountain Power pole on Monday night.
The Davis County Sheriff’s Office said the teen was with a group of friends around 9:19 p.m. local time on Nov. 10, when he suddenly decided to climb the utility structure, according to reports from KSL News Utah and Fox 13 Salt Lake City. While attempting the climb, he came into contact with live electrical equipment before falling to the ground.
Deputies responded to the scene and found the teen with severe burns from electrical contact as well as critical injuries from the fall. He was taken by Farmington Fire personnel to a nearby hospital, where he later died.
His friends called 911 immediately after the incident. Authorities say the group had gone to the area simply to enjoy the view of the sunset.
The teenager’s name has not yet been released.
The same power pole was involved in a similar fatal incident in 2007, when 15-year-old Scott Nye was electrocuted there. A memorial had been placed at the site in his honor, according to earlier reports from KSL News Utah and Fox 13.
“We extend our deepest sympathy to this boy’s family and to the friends who were with him,” said Nye’s mother, Valerie, in a statement shared with Fox 13. “It truly was an accident, and it’s heartbreaking.”
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A spokesperson for Rocky Mountain Power told ABC4 Utah that a prominent warning sign was posted near the pole, though the company could not confirm its current status. The spokesperson said the utility manages more than 7,000 miles of transmission lines and nearly 25,000 miles of distribution infrastructure and is fully cooperating with investigators as they review the incident.
