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Story
May 17, 1907
The Evening World
New York, New York County, New York
What is this article about?
Cable splicer Matthew P. Murphy survived a 2,200-volt electric shock and 40-foot fall from a platform in Somerville, suffering burns and injuries but recovering at home and planning to resume work.
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MATTHEW P. MURPHY MARVELOUSLY ESCAPED DEATH FROM LIGHT WIRE.
HURLED OFF PLATFORM.
Plunged Forty Feet to the Street, but Will Soon Be at Work Again.
Matthew P. Murphy, of No. 2 Mulberry street, a cable splicer in the employ of the New York and New Jersey Telephone Company, after having received 2,200 volts from an electric light wire, and being thrown from a platform forty feet to a stone sidewalk, has returned to his home.
Murphy was working in Somerville at the time of the accident. He was standing on a platform large enough to hold eight persons.
The electric wires were about eighteen inches from the telephone cable. In some mysterious manner he touched the wire and received the shock and was thrown to the street.
He was severely burned about the body by the electric current, and received painful injuries from the fall.
When seen by an Evening World reporter at his home to-day, Murphy said:
"I was on a platform forty feet from the ground, getting my cable ready to splice. The insulation on the electric light wires was all worn and the conductor quite bare.
"There were old copper fuses that are now obsolete, and these Public Service wires were within eighteen inches of the telephone cable.
"I was working very carefully with my back to the electric wire. Suddenly I felt a burning sensation through the body. The shock threw me from the platform which was large enough to hold eight men, and the next thing I remembered was finding myself in bed in the hospital.
"The shock burned holes through my clothes, and I was burned in several places. It even burned through the eyelets on my shoes into the flesh.
"I have been in the electrical business ever since years and have received many minor shocks, but to have 2,200 volts pass through me and fall forty feet to a stone sidewalk and live to tell the story is an experience I do not care to duplicate."
Murphy says he will soon be at work again.
HURLED OFF PLATFORM.
Plunged Forty Feet to the Street, but Will Soon Be at Work Again.
Matthew P. Murphy, of No. 2 Mulberry street, a cable splicer in the employ of the New York and New Jersey Telephone Company, after having received 2,200 volts from an electric light wire, and being thrown from a platform forty feet to a stone sidewalk, has returned to his home.
Murphy was working in Somerville at the time of the accident. He was standing on a platform large enough to hold eight persons.
The electric wires were about eighteen inches from the telephone cable. In some mysterious manner he touched the wire and received the shock and was thrown to the street.
He was severely burned about the body by the electric current, and received painful injuries from the fall.
When seen by an Evening World reporter at his home to-day, Murphy said:
"I was on a platform forty feet from the ground, getting my cable ready to splice. The insulation on the electric light wires was all worn and the conductor quite bare.
"There were old copper fuses that are now obsolete, and these Public Service wires were within eighteen inches of the telephone cable.
"I was working very carefully with my back to the electric wire. Suddenly I felt a burning sensation through the body. The shock threw me from the platform which was large enough to hold eight men, and the next thing I remembered was finding myself in bed in the hospital.
"The shock burned holes through my clothes, and I was burned in several places. It even burned through the eyelets on my shoes into the flesh.
"I have been in the electrical business ever since years and have received many minor shocks, but to have 2,200 volts pass through me and fall forty feet to a stone sidewalk and live to tell the story is an experience I do not care to duplicate."
Murphy says he will soon be at work again.
What sub-type of article is it?
Survival
Personal Triumph
Extraordinary Event
What themes does it cover?
Survival
Misfortune
Recovery
What keywords are associated?
Electric Shock
Forty Foot Fall
Cable Splicer
Survival
Burns
Somerville
What entities or persons were involved?
Matthew P. Murphy
Where did it happen?
Somerville
Story Details
Key Persons
Matthew P. Murphy
Location
Somerville
Story Details
Matthew P. Murphy, a cable splicer for the New York and New Jersey Telephone Company, was shocked by 2,200 volts from a bare electric light wire while working on a platform 40 feet above the street in Somerville, causing him to fall to the stone sidewalk below; he suffered severe burns and injuries but survived and expects to return to work soon.