On Tuesday, Golan County emergency personnel responded to a 911 call of an unconscious man on an electrical pole on county road 25, north of Pinebox. On arrival, they found Pinebox Electrical employee Devon Little unconscious and hanging from the pole where he had been conducting routine maintenance. EMTs called for support and fire-crew arrived and pulled Little down. Little was treated for burns at the scene and was rushed to the Golon County Hospital in Pinebox, where he remains in stable condition.
Although it was initially believed that Little was the victim of an accident caused by the power lines, it was learned that the electricity in the local area had been shut off for the maintenance. Upon looking at victim’s equipment, it was determined that Little had actually been struck by lightning.
“While getting him down, his helmet came off and it wasn’t until we found it that we saw the hole,” Pinebox Electrical manager Pete Boyd said. “It was a good three-inch hole burned right through the high-density plastic. Good grief but that must have been some shock.”
Little’s mother, Kendra Little, stated that this is not the first time her son has been struck by lightning. In 1996, he was hit by a bolt while camping in the Big Thicket with a group of friends. And again in 2003, Little was struck by lightning while playing softball at the Pinebox Sports Park.
“My son seems to draw lightning out of the sky,” Mrs. Little said. “Maybe the third time’s the charm and he won’t be hit no more.”
A work crew unearthed skeletal remains while digging a trench for a new water line servicing ETU on Monday, bringing construction to a halt while police investigated. It was determined later in the afternoon that the skeleton from the nineteenth century and not related to any current investigation.