Boy catapulted on to rail line by 25,000-volt shock

A boy was catapulted from a bridge on to a railway track after being given an electric shock by a 25,000-volt power line.

Sam Cunningham, 16, of Liverpool Road, Wigan, England, was retrieving a rugby ball from a bridge when he was hit by the charge from overhead power cables, attracted by steel toe caps in his boots.

He fell on to a goods railway line below and was rescued after his friends contacted the emergency services.

A 20-year-old family member, who did not want to be named, said: “The steel toe caps attracted the electricity and it threw him up into the air and down on to the tracks.

“One leg of his tracksuit bottoms and his T-shirt and jacket were totally melted.

“He’ll be all right but it’ll take a while to get back to normal. He’s still got his sense of humour.

“It’s been a shock, you don’t think things like that will happen.”

Sam is being treated in the burns unit of Whiston Hospital.

The incident occurred at 7.45pm last Thursday near to Platt Bridge, Wigan, Greater Manchester.

A British Transport Police spokesman said the bridge was not open to the public.

He said: “British Transport Police are investigating the incident but it is not being treated as suspicious.

“We’d like to emphasise that the railway environment is extremely dangerous.”