John Miller electric shock hands burned.

[Gordan Delaney]

Just got of the phone with John Miller his is at the University Hospital in salt Lake City. Someone in the room answered the phone and held it for him so we could talk. This happened once before,only this time was much worse. He was trying to put an antenna on the roof which is close to high power lines. He can`t move his hands or knees. He`s in bad shape but should recover. He said it will be several months to recover. Please keep John in our prayers. Speedy recovery my friend.

Gordy

[Tim Wescott]

Ouch.  John -- don't do that again!

[Gene O'Keefe]

I'll add him to the FMC prayer chain.....God speed John's recovery.

[Derek Barry]

That's terrible. Best wishes for a speedy recovery John!!!!1


Derek

[Mike Keville]

Gordy, please give John my best wishes for a full and speedy recovery.

[Leo Mehl]

You should Have put that antenna on your outhouse instead of your house. I hate doing recovery. It's soooo boooooorrrrrring I will be thinking bout you John  an I also wish God Speed to record recovery. Next time keep your eyes on the power lines.Leo

[Tim Wescott]

You should Have put that antenna on your outhouse instead of your house. I hate doing recovery. It's soooo boooooorrrrrring I will be thinking bout you John  an I also wish God Speed to record recovery. Next time keep your eyes on the power lines.Leo

I couldn't say that better myself.  I hate it when it's a choice between hurting or being useless.

Gordon: if you talk to John again add me to the list of well-wishers.  How do you pass a get-well card around the club house when the club house is virtual?

[Eric Viglione]

Ouch! Ditto! I know that was scary & painful! Been jolted myself once or twice. It's all about the amperage...

Give John my best,

Eric Viglione

[proparc]

Tell him Milton "Proparc" Graham said get better soon.

[Steve Helmick]

Gordy, tell John to stay the heck off his roof, away from electrical stuff, and get better soon! See y'all at Eugene. 

[Jim Kraft]

Prayer for John sent. Hope he fools everybody and heals up way faster than they think.

[Larry Renger]

John, get well soon! I want to see your smiling face at the next VSC.

But could someone add some detail about how the accident happened?  Did the power jump? or did he accidentally touch the antenna to the wires?

[Balsa Butcher]

Our thoughts are with you John and wishing you a speedy recovery. Darn, talk about a freak accident...

[Clint Ormosen]

Boy, the weirdest stuff seems to happen to airplane people. Very anxious to hear about how this one happened.

John, rest yourself and heal up soon! We need 'ya buddy!

And for goodness sake, don't play with the defibrillator in the hospital room.

[wwwarbird]

 Best wishes and get well soon John.

[Randy Powell]

Sorry this happened. Tell John I said speedy recovery.

[Walter Hicks]

John , we are with you bud, get well soon .

[John Leidle]

  Gordy,
  While reading this I thought it sounded familier. Did you say he got into this stuff before?

[Randy Cuberly]

Gordy,
Please tell John I'm really sorry this happened.  I will pray for a quick recovery for him.  Can't believe this could happen to a good guy like John.
Give him my best.
Probably should'a kept you guys here in Tucson...let you go off on your own and look what happens!

Randy Cuberly

[Bob Reeves]

Wow! He's lucky to still be breathing. Spent the majority of my working life in two-way radio and putting up an antenna anywhere close to power lines was never an option.

[Geoff Goodworth]

John Leidle, John and I have been mates for quite a few years now and often work together on design projects—even with both of us on opposite sides of the Pacific.

I have known for some years that John was involved in ham radio but I think the last incident that he experienced—perhaps in just the last 12 months—was a lightning strike. On that occasion, I think that the only personal damage was a significant injury to his hip pocket nerve.

We wish him a speedy recovery, although Gordan has suggested to me privately that John my be laid up for some months.

[john e. holliday]

Tell Big John that the old DOC says he is too old to be doing this.   Also to follow doctors and nurses orders.   I want to see him again.

[Dennis Adamisin]

Prayers for a speedy and complete recovery.

[Allen Goff]

Gordy. I remember as a 14 year old boy helping dad and a friend raising a ham antenna up a 75 ft tower. The gen pole started to bend and the last section of tower and the antenna made contact with a secondary power lines from a near by sub station. Dads friend was knocked off the tower and onto the house top. Because of the nails in his shoe,s the electricity went out his feet. He had a big hole in his foot and his hand too. He was in the hospital for a week I think. Those sounds of that horrible event still trouble me today.
I will be praying for your friend John.

Blessings
Allen

[John Cralley]

Here is to a speedy recovery John!!

For what it is worth, you do NOT have to actually come in contact with a High Tension power line to get zapped!! Just having a conductor near the line is good enough to draw an arc!! Even being nearby without drawing an arc can set up sympathetic electrical activity -- hence the warning NOT to fly your control line near power lines!!!

[Grady Widener]

Bellcrank John,
Convalesce a bunch and sending big thoughts for up and around feel better better soon.
Grady

[Gordan Delaney]

Geoff,

Last year when John was putting up his CB antenna it wasn`t lightning it was the same power lines doing the same thing, installing a new antenna. I`ll be going up to see him in a couple of hours. I`ll let you know how he`s doing.

Gordy

[Tom Niebuhr]

Gordy,
Wow, I just talked to John 2 days ago!. Please say Hi and tell him to stop looking at the pretty girls when he is working on the roof.

[John Leidle]

  The thing of it is,,,   when you have power going through your body the current flows through your internal organs & bone marrow. When you damage the bone marrow you have a high risk of Regenitive Deteriation of the bone itself . This is if you get into the 120/240 volt Residental lines near our houses.  If you fly near Transmission lines & come in contact with the voltages in upper of 4160  Volts it will blow you apart like a firecracker & leave you with 3rd degree burns on your internal organs not to mention what it does to your skin.More than likey you will be living at the Burn Center for a few months.
  Saftey is a must around this stuff.  It's nothing to scoff at.
  I wish John a speedy recovery & back to the field soon. I'd like to thank John for his contribution & personal help to me on my Electra.
             John

[FLOYD CARTER]

Not much chance of very high voltage lines anywhere near a residence.  Residential voltages are  deadly enough, depending on your grounding path.  High lines feeding residential pole transformers are 24,000 V, and that WILL jump about 1/2" to a grounded conductor.  Your 240 volt entrance lines are insulated, and that is sufficient to prevent to prevent shock, unless your metal antenna cuts the insulation when falling. If you touch either of the "hot" wires, it is only (!) 120 volts to ground. 

I have a large ham beam antenna on my house, but no where near any AC power.

Floyd

[Gerald Arana]

Sorry to hear about that John. 
A friend of my Dad's (Jim Norville) was killed when his CL ship hit the power lines near the boardwalk here in Santa Cruz in the early '50's. I was just a young squirt then and don't remember any details except he was killed.

My brother also hit a HVL with an aluminum TV antenna when he was trying to stand it up against his aluminum shop building. Fortunately most of the juice went to the building and he was only burned on his hands and feet.  This happened about five (or so) years ago and he is in good spirits about it now. He turned 83 a couple months ago and is still drag racing his in liners. (They call him "the old man")

Speedy recovery John.

Jerry

[John Leidle]

 Floyd, some guys are willing to fly near transmission lines is why I wrote this .

[Martin Quartim]

Gordy,

Please tell John my best wishes for a speedy recovery.

Martin

[Bill Little]

I hate to hear this about my friend, John.  Best wishes and prayers for his recovery.  I know how that is because I am undergoing recovery myself, and it really really seems slow.  So tell him to keep up the spirits it too shall pass!

Bill

[Jim Kraft]

That is so scary. When I was in high school I worked in a grain elevator during harvest in the summer, and I was using a truck lift to dump farm trucks. Not sure what happened but I got hit when the 220 came back through the switch into me. All I could remember was screaming involuntarily before I blacked out. I ended up 10 feet away, and the guys that were standing there said I jumped 6 feet in the air. I think I only got hit for an instant, and then it let me loose. I have been told that when you hit the ground is what saves you as it gets your heart started again.

Heard about this happening to others where it gets their heart out of sinc, and they have to stop it and restart it. They felt real bad until their heart was restarted.

[Douglas Ames]

This happened once before,only this time was much worse. He was trying to put an antenna on the roof which is close to high power lines.
Gordy

Didn't learn the first time?
I deal with 115 VAC/400 Hz Aircraft power everyday. So far I've only been bit by static due to a poorly grounded aircraft - not fun.
Hope his heart's alright. Nothing wrong with installing an antenna in the attic as long as it's grounded.

[Jim Rhoades]

     I went to see john yesterday, wednesday, afternboon at the hospital.  He seems to be doing pretty well.  The shock knocked him off the roof of his metal mobile home and when he woke up he couldn't move and wasn't breathing.  He said he forced himself to breathe and feels that if he hadn't he wouldn't be alive now.  He was installing an antenna on the roof and said the arc jumped to the antenna some distance.  I believe he said it was a 7500 volt line.
     They had to slit his inner arms to reduce the pressure on his hands so that blood could circulate properly.  He said he could see the muscles and tendons.  When I was there the nurse checked him for feeling and movement on his fingers and toes.  He could move his fingers fairly well but said he didn't have much feeling but there was some which is a good sign.  His arms were wrapped and coveed because of the slits they did on them.  He seemed in pretty good spirits and I think he will recover OK but it may take some time.  While I was ther they took him to X-ray to check out a possible re-injurying of his back from an old injury.  I don't know the results of that.
     I talked to Gordan Delaney earlier today and he was going to see John so he should have a new report soon.  As was said earlier, this was the second time this happened in the last years time.  John evidently is a slow learner.  He did say that this will be the last time he tries to install an antenna ton the roof of the metal mobile home.  I hope so.  The third time might be the charm that takes his life.
     Get well soon John
Jim Rhoades

[builditright]

Hi Guys, I spoke with John on the phone a little while ago,
he does not sound good at all and said he may be in the hospital
for a couple of months because he will also have to do therapy.

He was actually kind of out of it when I called but said I could post
the number to his room so if anyone wants to give him a shout here it is.

801-581-2700 ask to connect to John Miller's room

Get well soon bud

[Tom Niebuhr]

Jim & Walt,

Thanks for the updates on John. I think it is probably best to give him a few more days before more telephone calls. Gordy and Jim can give us more of a feeling on John's status.

John is far from wealthy, he probably needs a lot of support.

John is one of the nicest people that I know, our prayers are with him.

[dale gleason]

At age twelve, someone we all know and love connected three or four extension cords between a wall plug and his Grandad's old electric drill, ungrounded. Wearing shorts, barefoot, and kneeling in deep wet grass, he was going to drill the bellcrank hole for a Sterling P-40. Upon pulling the trigger, the voltage/amperage wouldn't allow him to let go. He sorta' bounced into the street far enough that the cord unplugged. The cars managed to stop before running him over. He ran into the house, hollerin', his parents thought his brother had been run over, so they left abruptly to check on his brother, leaving him stranded and bewildered.

Boy, was that a lesson learned....no more Sterling P-40s for me!

The first commandment in the King's English: Thou shalt not allow thy body to supercede the earth.

Get well quick, John,
dale g

[Randy Powell]

I think there is a lesson in there somewhere.

[Randy Cuberly]

I'm really puzzled!
I'm still wondering how such a bright talented guy could allow this to happen to him twice.  It's really scary because if John could lapse into foolishness like this any of us probably could.
As an engineer with lots of experience I really understand the principles of the physics involved here but really do not understand the inner workings of the human mind that allow us (not just John) to slip into a fog that makes us determined to do something even though we know it's a stupid thing to do.
I think that's the lesson here...be ever vigilant for that spark of nonsense that allows these things to happen to us.
Distressing!

Randy C

I want to call John but think I will wait a few more days.  I'm sure he's getting more attention than he probably wants right now.

[John Leidle]

 I suggest everyone here  Googles "Electrical Burns"  and gets a look at pictures of a silent force. A lot of people scoff at this stuff. I hope we all learn from what poor John is going though. If he got into "High Voltage"  he is most likely in agony. I hope this is not his case.  If you have ever seen Electrical Accidents you would realise your way of life is on the line when getting close to it.  When you get up over 600volts it does things you cant believe.
  John

[dirty dan]

This is really bad news about a great guy.

Gordan, will you please closely monitor the recovery process? I am concerned that John will use this time to get involved in electric-powered CL models...!

Or maybe not.

Dan

[EddyR]

As a kid in the 50's I and a friend whose dad ran a TV and appliance store put up hundred's of TV antennas in the Binghamton NY area. Some were on steep roofs on two story houses and we did a lot of 40' towers on flat  roof apartments with high voltage on two sides of the building. We never had a problem as we new the danger and were very carfull. We always used a safety rope on steep roofs. I wouldn't go near those steep roofs today. I did find out real soon that if you had a cut and let it come in contact with the ground wire you got a **** shock.  It was low voltage but in a open cut it felt like 110 volts. I got a lot of 12,000 volts hits off of the TV old picture tubes in the 1950's. Won't kill you but it will knock you down

[Will Hinton]

As we tend to minimize the danger of our household 120 volts I just HAVE to ad this - someone posted that "It's the amperage" and we need to keep that in mind.  120vac causes more deaths in the US than any other voltage, (at least for several years that was the case. I haven't monitored it since I retired)  for the reason that we do tend to poo-poo it as dangerous.  120 with plenty of current is deadly.
John, I pray you heal completely with no after effects!

[FLOYD CARTER]

It's true that the current flow is the dangerous thing.  But, the amount (and time) of current depends on many factors.You just don't know until it happens, and then it's too late.  Remember that current flow is impossible without a voltage source.  So, you can be 100% safe by avoiding high voltage sources.

F.C.

[Allen Brickhaus]

John,  Blessings to your quick recovery.

Allen Brickhaus

[Garf]

I have been told that as little as 35 volts can kill you under the right circumstances. I don't feel like finding out.

[John Leidle]

  Will,
  I worked with a guy that cut into the Runway lighting at Sea Tac Airport 1,200 volts   he had a scar on his elbow the size of an old silver dollar .I worked with a guy that was hit by a fireball from a 13,800 fault at a glass company. The poor guy looked like a lizard.  He hadnt touched the line , dust from above was disturbed & the dust served as a conductor  & threw a fireball out into him.
     You are in my thoughts John Miller . Good luck.