Jan. 26--A wire and wire nut were melted, and there were burn marks on the underside of a metal lid covering an in-ground junction box where, on May 29, Jayden Hicks, 11, Salina, received an electrical shock that proved fatal, according to documents received by the Journal.
According to an emergency responder report, when city employees removed the lid from the box there was evidence of an electrical short.
"There were signs that the wires along the east side of the box had been arcing against the inside of the box and possibly the lid," according to the report. The Journal was unable to determine through sources what might have caused a short.
An incident report prepared by city electrician Steve Adams, the emergency responder report and photographs of the wiring inside the junction box and the scene at Campbell Plaza, in the 100 block of South Santa Fe Avenue, were provided by the city of Salina in response to an open records request from the Journal.
A letter accompanying that information from Topeka attorney James Nordstrom, who represents the city, said that because of pending litigation not all investigative materials related to the cause of fatal injuries to Jayden are subject to the Kansas Open Records Act.
Wrongful death suit
Nordstrom wrote that the city is expecting to be sued, and Kansas City, Kan., attorney Mike Rader, who represents Jayden's family, said Wednesday that he is preparing to file a wrongful death lawsuit. The city carries insurance that would pay a maximum of $1 million an incident.
Jayden, who would have been a sixth-grader at Lakewood Middle School this year, died at the age of 12 on Dec. 31 at a hospital in Lincoln, Neb. She never regained consciousness after she was shocked when she was playing with friends at Campbell Plaza during a thunderstorm.
In-ground junction box
Jayden was shocked when she came into contact with the metal cover over one of two in-ground electrical junction boxes at the front of Campbell Plaza. She was lying on the junction box covers, unconscious, when emergency responders arrived. A paramedic and others who attempted to assist her were shocked to a lesser degree.
Nordstrom said that because of the pending litigation, documents determining liability are protected from public disclosure. Also, Nordstrom said police investigative materials would not be produced.
However, Nordstrom provided copies of the photographs, as well as an incident form filled out by a witness to the shocking of paramedic Sam Hoskins, who attempted to lift Jayden while she was lying on the junction boxes. He also provided the unsigned electrical shock incident report prepared by Adams, and a document that summarized emergency response to the incident.
Checking the boxes
In his one-page report, Adams wrote that he responded to Campbell Plaza at about 7:45 p.m., which would have been about an hour after the incident.
Adams wrote that when he arrived, Westar Energy employees were using a voltmeter to check for voltage in the junction boxes. Adams wrote that he had to use a crowbar to remove the junction box cover, breaking it in the process.
"When the lid was removed, the first item I noticed was that a wire was melted, along with the wire nut," the report read. "Additionally, I noticed burn marks on the underneath side of the lid."
The source of the wire
Adams wrote that he was asked to determine the source of the wire to ensure that it would not be turned back on accidentally and to determine its voltage potential.
"I moved the wire that was burnt out from where it had been touching, so that it would not spark as I was checking to see which location this feed was from," the report read.
He wrote that, first, Westar's power was restored, and that did not return voltage to the wire.
Then a breaker labeled "downtown lanterns" was turned on, and Adams again checked the voltage.
"The potential to ground was around 208 volts," the report read. "Once we verified the source and where it was fed from, we turned the breaker off and locked the panel out so that there was no voltage there while the circuit was being evaluated."
A 30-year-old system
City officials have said the wires in the junction box were part of a 30-year-old city-owned and city-maintained downtown lighting system. City Manager Jason Gage said previously that possible causes of the incident being explored included a lightning strike that found its way into the system or a loose connection that caused power arcing.
Emergency responders
The emergency responder incident report indicated that an ambulance arrived at 6:49 p.m.
"Paramedic Sam Hoskins exited the medic unit and approached the victim. The victim appeared lifeless and unresponsive," the report read. "Hoskins looked around the area but did not see anything that warned of a possible electrocution."
Hoskins approached Jayden and bent to pick her up. The report said he intended to immediately carry her to the ambulance and sent his partner to clear off the cot.
An immediate shock
"He knelt down with his right knee to get a better lifting angle," the report read. "His knee touched a 10-inch square metal plate which was slightly under the patient's right side."
Hoskins felt an immediate shock and fell backward, rolling away from Jayden. The report indicated that 2 to 3 inches of rainwater was flowing toward the street through the area where Jayden was lying.
Hoskins immediately jumped up and warned his co-workers that the girl was energized by electric current.
After firefighters hooked a Fiberglas-handled pike pole through one of Jayden's belt loops, they were able to pull her away from the junction box and transfer her to an ambulance, where life-support measures were begun. She was transported from the scene at 6:52 p.m., just three minutes after the ambulance arrived.
Others were shocked
A second ambulance was called to respond to Salina Running Co., across South Santa Fe from the plaza, where siblings and other children who had been playing in the rain with Jayden had sought help. Some of the children, as well as a store employee who attempted to assist, were experiencing tingling sensations related to having been shocked, according to the report. They declined treatment.
Jayden was transported to a Wichita hospital, and Hoskins was treated at Salina Regional Health Center for stiffness and pain in his lower back and legs, the report said.
-- Reporter Erin Mathews can be reached at 822-1415 or by email at [email protected].
Copyright 2014 - The Salina Journal, Kan.
