Window cleaner loses forearm when 33,000 volts jump from cable

A window cleaner lost his left forearm, and may never walk again, after suffering a 33,000-volt electric shock.

Jason Knight, 34, was thrown seven feet when an electric current jumped from an overhead cable to his cleaning pole.

The father of three, from Westbury in Wiltshire, said he thought he was going to die from the shock on April 6.

The current that ran through his body was so strong that his shoes were thrown off his feet and scorched boot prints were left in the grass.

“It was only when I looked down at my feet, my shoes were no longer on, that I realised I had such serious injuries,” he said.

Mr Knight, who has owned his own window cleaning business for two years, was in a customer’s back garden and had almost finished with a job at the time of the shock, which narrowly missed his heart.

He was flown to Southmead Hospital where doctors performed 17 operations to save his life. As well as his left forearm, five of his toes were amputated due to severe burns. He is still in the hospital.

Mr Knight, who lives with his wife Sara, 35, and their 18-month-old identical twin girls and seven-year-old daughter, said: “At that point all I could think was that I was going to die.

“I couldn’t tap on the window, there was nothing I could do.”

A flashover occurs when electricity jumps from an overhead line to a nearby object because it is not insulated or the insulation is damaged.

The Health and Safety Executive is investigating the incident. In a preliminary report, it said the power cables had been inspected in 2023 and met the required safety standards.

SSEN Distribution confirmed the last safety inspection took place in 2023 and said it took responsibility for public safety “very seriously”.

A spokesperson for the company said due to the ongoing HSE investigation they were unable to comment further but continued “to fully support the HSE in its investigation”.