Finding into death of Jarrod Peter Fox
Deceased
Jarrod Peter Fox
Demographics
37y, male
Date of death
2020-08-18
Finding date
2023-03-03
Cause of death
Electrocution
AI-generated summary
Jarrod Fox, a 37-year-old experienced A-Grade electrician, died from electrocution while performing electrical work at a residential property. He was working alone in a crawl space under the house when he contacted a live metal coat hanger that had punctured through the insulation of a damaged cable. Critical failures included: not isolating the main power supply before commencing work, despite telling the homeowner he had done so; and the absence of a residual current device (RCD) protecting the circuit where the damaged cable originated. The coroner found the death was preventable had the electrical supply been properly disconnected. Key lesson: even experienced electricians must rigorously follow lockout/tagout procedures and isolate all power before working on electrical equipment, particularly when working alone without supervision.
AI-generated summary and tagging — may contain inaccuracies; refer to original finding for legal purposes.
Error types
Clinical conditions
Contributing factors
- Failure to isolate main power supply before commencing electrical work
- Damaged cable with punctured insulation in wall cavity
- Metal coat hanger in contact with energised active conductor
- Absence of residual current device (RCD) protecting the affected circuit
- Working alone without supervision or second person present
- Possible arcing event at punctured cable location
Coroner's recommendations
- Continued promotion of Energy Safe Victoria's 'Never work live' campaign emphasising that electricians and tradespersons must never work on energised equipment and must isolate and prove all equipment and control circuits are safely isolated
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