How often these injuries happen
OSHA recorded 1,509 severe electrical incidents over the past decade. The vast majority of these cases, 98%, involve direct effects of electric current on your body, which can lead to life-altering internal damage and long-term health complications.
You frequently suffer injuries to your hands and fingers, which are often the primary point of contact with energized equipment.
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Electrical injuries typically occur when you interact with exposed electric parts or faulty equipment during routine maintenance and installation. Whether you are reaching into a live panel, touching an energized cable, or encountering a malfunctioning appliance, these incidents often stem from a failure to properly DE-energize equipment or verify that power sources are locked out.
| Injury Type | Incidents | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Effects of electric current | 1,479 |
| 2 | Amputations, avulsions, enucleations | 19 |
| 3 | Severe wounds or internal injuries and other injuries | 3 |
| 4 | Surface and flesh wounds and other injuries | 2 |
| 5 | Other multiple traumatic injuries— n.e.c. | 2 |
| 6 | Fractures | 1 |
| 7 | Thermal burns | 1 |
| 8 | Traumatic injuries or exposures— unspecified | 1 |
Where injuries happen most
Construction accounts for 46% of all reported electrical incidents, largely due to the high volume of temporary wiring and frequent interaction with energized systems on job sites. Manufacturing and utility work also carry elevated risks, as these environments require constant handling of heavy machinery and high-voltage distribution equipment that can become hazardous if not maintained to code.
Real cases like yours
Common patterns in these incidents include you contacting live wires while servicing light fixtures, handling energized leads in transformers, or being shocked by faulty fans and panels. These reports frequently highlight failures in lockout and tagout procedures that should have isolated the power source before you began work. If any of these scenarios sound like what happened to you, an attorney can help you review the specifics of your incident.
| Year | State | Industry | Incident summary | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | FL | Accommodation & Food Services | "An employee was preparing to replace a ceiling light fixture in the kitchen area. He removed two ceiling tiles, reached to touch the back of the housing of the light fixture, and contacted a live electrical wire. The employee sustained an electric shock and second-degree burns on his left hand." | |
| 2025 | IL | Utilities | "An Ameren lineman was making secondary voltage connections in a pad-mounted residential feed transformer. The lineman contacted an energized lead bushing, sustained an electrical shock, and was hospitalized." | |
| 2025 | SD | Construction | "The injured employee was installing all-thread rod while sitting on top of a bridge-style overhead hoist crane beam. He was tightening the all-thread rod to the crane equipment when he reached back with his left arm to adjust his posture. His left hand contacted a cable that powers the crane. The employee sustained an electric shock. The cable was not locked out/tagged out at the time." | |
| 2025 | LA | Public Administration | "An employee placed his hand down and was shocked by electricity from a misting fan." | |
| 2025 | MO | Construction | "An employee was servicing a customer's electrical panel. When going to close the panel door, the employee went to push wires into the panel and sustained an electric shock and burns to their middle, ring and little fingers. The little fingertip was amputated and the ring finger required surgery." | |
| 2025 | KS | Construction | "Three employees were responding to a power outage caused by a recent storm. While climbing a utility pole, an employee contacted an electrical component with his left hand, thumb, and index finger, resulting in an electrical shock and probable exposure to an arc flash. The injured employee lost consciousness and was found hanging upside down in his rope harness, requiring resuscitation and resulting in hospitalization." | |
| 2025 | UT | Professional Services | "An X-ray machine had lost power and an employee went to replace the power supply. While replacing a cable on the power supply assembly, the employee's right hand contacted the grounding terminals coming out of the back of the power supply assembly and they received an electric shock. The employee was hospitalized." | |
| 2025 | FL | Transportation & Warehousing | "An employee was walking from the office to a truck when he was struck by lightning. The employee suffered burns to his hand and foot, as well as a heart arrhythmia. The employee was hospitalized." | |
| 2025 | FL | Administrative Services | "An employee was working on a 277/480-volt electrical panel when they sustained an electric shock. The employee was hospitalized." | |
| 2025 | OK | Construction | "An employee was putting up a light fixture in a bank when his left index finger contacted a live wire. The employee suffered an electric shock and third-degree burns to his left hand that resulted in hospitalization." |
Source: OSHA Severe Injury Reports. Narratives are verbatim from filings; identifying details may have been redacted by OSHA.