A power line fell in Portland, Oregon on Wednesday, killing three people. The baby survived and was rescued from the scene of the accident.
Portland Fire and Rescue was dispatched “near the intersection of NE 122 and NE Siskiyou in the Russel neighborhood” shortly before 11:45 a.m. Wednesday for a “possible car fire.”
The department said in a press release that while en route to the scene, they received information from the dispatch center stating that there were “reports of a person on fire in the street, a power line down in the street, uncertain if the person was electrocuted, the victim still down in the street, another hysterical caller on this says there are 4 patients here, including a baby with someone on fire, three people lying on the street unconscious.”
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Picture of a downed power line near the house.
EMILY KASK/AFP via Getty
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The press release states that it is an “emotionally heightened situation” and that firefighters are “preparing for anything based on a series of rapidly updated information.”
When they arrived, they found three people “located approximately 35′ from the full-size SUV with an electrical cord draped over the vehicle with a large tree branch over the top of the electrical line resting on the hood of the SUV.”
They were identified as “two adults and a reported teenager” who were confirmed deceased after medical evaluation. The baby was “determined to be unaffected by the situation” and was transported to a local hospital after being found by a community member who lives in the neighboring area.
The department said there were “no flames” and that the utility had shut down the power line.
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“The affected persons were passengers in an SUV and exited the vehicle following a boom that lowered a live power line onto their vehicle. When the persons feet touched the ground and their bodies touched the car, they became part of an active electrical circuit resulting in their by death,” the statement reads.
Oregon — like much of the US — faced harsh winter weather. On Wednesday morning, the National Weather Service reported that roads remained “ice-covered and extremely slippery across much of northwestern Oregon and southwestern Washington, particularly in the Portland/Vancouver metro area.”
The city of Portland issued a travel advisory asking individuals to “avoid travel until conditions improve” and reiterated its warning in a news release Wednesday afternoon.
“The Portland Bureau of Transportation (PBOT) is urging the public to avoid travel tonight and Thursday morning, as the forecast for freezing rain overnight — and again Thursday night — could make travel hazardous,” the press release said.
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City officials advised their residents to “be prepared for worse-than-expected conditions, as the forecast comes with uncertainty about the timing and amount of freezing rain.”
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