Wootton

Wootton Man Electrocuted 17th September 1950

A verdict of death by misadventure was recorded by the coroner at the inquest held into the death of Fredrick G. Pople of Wootton on Tuesday 19

Giving evidence Mrs Pople said her husband who was employed at Messrs Saunders-Roe arrived home about 5.00pm. and was carrying out various jobs around the house until 7.00pm. Around that time her sister and husband arrived from East Cowes, her husband then went into the kitchen while she brought in a container for some apples. She then heard a groan from the kitchen and ran into the passageway and was meet by her husband coming towards her in a doubled up position, he said he had had an electric shock and then fell to the floor.

Arthur Roach, brother-in-law then gave evidence and said the deceased had come into the room when he first arrived but left almost immediately, he had brought some apples and Mrs Pople had gone to get a container. Moments later he heard Mrs Pople call for him to come quickly and at the same time heard her husband say he had received an electric shock. He found the deceased lying on his back unconscious and commenced artificial respiration, which he kept up until the doctor, arrived. Later he went into the kitchen and found an electric lead and a pocket knife with the blade open on the floor.

Dr. Kennedy said he arrived at the house at 7.25 pm and found that Mr Pople was already dead, reason for death was sudden heart failure. The coroner then asked was strength of current was required to stop the heart, in reply Dr. Kennedy said it depended on the amount of current passing through the body and the health of the individual. In the case of Mr Pople he believed him to be in good health as he not seen him in a professional way since 1936. Questioned further, the doctor said had the deceased hands been wet, or he had leaned on the wet draining board or both hands had formed a circuit, then the current passing through the body would have been high.

Mr Andrews for the Southern Electricity Board said he examined the electrical connections in the kitchen in the presence of the police and found them to be in good working order. Examining the kettle he found a loose connection, which would have caused an intermittent connection and result in the kettle failing to heat up.

He believed that Mr Pople was using the knife to prise open the contact to make a better connection with the plug still switched on. The electric shock would have caused him to jump backwards and grasp the lead thereby increasing the current passing through him and fall backwards pulling the wire out of the plug.

In closing the coroner express his sympathy and that of the electricity board to the deceased widow.

Source: Isle of Wight County Press, 23rd September 1950