1 dead, 1 hospitalized in Keys electrocution incident

Ambulance

SHARK KEY, Fla. – Authorities say one man was killed and another taken to a Miami hospital after an electrocution incident in the Lower Florida Keys Friday afternoon.

It happened at around 2:45 p.m. on Shark Key, which is just east of Big Coppitt Key.

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According to the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office, the two men worked in landscaping for Blue Island Landscaping.

“The two men were reportedly trimming a palm tree just before 3 p.m. and, as they were taking the ladder down, it touched the electrified line. Two doctors happened to be nearby and administered care to the men on the scene,” MCSO spokesperson Becky Herrin said. “According to preliminary information, one man is deceased; the other was airlifted to the Ryder Trauma Center in Miami.”

Both men were in their 20s, Herrin said.

Crime scene investigators were at the scene, though authorities said the incident wasn’t suspicious.


About the Authors

Janine Stanwood joined Local 10 News in February 2004 as an assignment editor. She is now a general assignment reporter. Before moving to South Florida from her Washington home, Janine was the senior legislative correspondent for a United States senator on Capitol Hill.

Chris Gothner joined the Local 10 News team in 2022 as a Digital Journalist.

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