Viner, Stephen Leonard
Deceased
Stephen Leonard Viner
Demographics
57y, male
Date of death
2017-02-06
Finding date
2019-08-08
Cause of death
Abnormal cardiac arrhythmia due to electric shock; contributing cause: coronary atherosclerosis
AI-generated summary
Stephen Leonard Viner, a 57-year-old handyman, died from an abnormal cardiac arrhythmia triggered by electrical shock while investigating a failed sump pump in a flooded basement. He turned on an isolator switch to a supposedly decommissioned blue refrigeration unit, coming into contact with exposed conductive parts with faulty earthing. Viner had pre-existing coronary atherosclerosis which made his heart susceptible to arrhythmia from electrical injury. The coroner found the equipment was not actually decommissioned as believed. Key clinical lessons: unqualified personnel should not investigate electrical failures in hazardous environments (flooded basements); property owners must verify complete decommissioning of electrical equipment; patients with pre-existing coronary disease face increased cardiac risk from electrical shock; and inadequate property maintenance and defect management contributed to the unsafe conditions.
AI-generated summary and tagging — may contain inaccuracies; refer to original finding for legal purposes.
Error types
Drugs involved
Contributing factors
- Faulty earthing of blue refrigeration unit
- Isolator switch accessible and operable in basement
- Electrical equipment not fully decommissioned as believed
- Flooded basement with live electrical circuits
- Pre-existing coronary atherosclerosis increasing cardiac vulnerability
- Inadequate property maintenance and defect management
- Unqualified personnel investigating electrical failure
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