WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Officials say a man who kept pigeons was electrocuted when he used a metal pole to remove one of his birds from a power line.
The Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office says 36-year-old Elian Garcia Rivera was in his backyard Saturday afternoon when he spotted one of his pigeons on a power line running above.
They say he got a 20-foot pole and tried to remove the bird, but he touched the power line and was electrocuted.
According to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, birds can safely sit on wires because they aren’t grounded — so the electricity in the power line stays put. People get electrocuted when they touch a power line because they are on the ground, causing the electricity to flow through them.
