Students: Electric Fence that Critically Shocked Teen Ongoing Problem

A 13-year-old student was critically injured when he received an electrical shock when he came in contact with a handicapped access ramp that students claim has been delivering shocks for weeks. (Screenshot: WXYZ video)

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Students at a southeast Michigan school where a student was critically injured after receiving an electric shock during a football game told investigators Wednesday the incident wasn’t isolated and they’ve been experiencing

The 13-year-old student was shocked in the football stands in a middle school football game at Lincoln High School in Augusta Township on Tuesday afternoon, WXYZ, Channel 7, reports. The student’s current condition is unknown.

School superintendent Ellen Bonter said the student, who was transported to Children’s Hospital for treatment, touched an electrified fence that was part of the handicap access to the bleaches.

In a letter to parents, Bonter said local police sources said the student was playing catch along the sidelines and came in contact with the handicap access ramp, where he received the critical injury.

The game was canceled and the stands were evacuated after the accident, Bonter said.

Michigan State Police and Lincoln Consolidated Schools are investigating the accident. One high school student posted Lincoln Consolidated Schools Facebook page that he and several friends have received similar shocks for several weeks.

Freshman Justin Herrero, 14, described the shocks as sensations similar to those produced by a game at the popular Chuck-E-Cheese restaurants that challenges kids to hold onto a vibrating handle as long as they can.

“You could see my bones popping out,” Herrero said, explaining the charge he felt that caused the skin on his arm to tighten as he held onto the handicapped ramp’s safety railing with one hand and pole fencing attached to it.

Another student, Haylee Keller, backed up Herrero’s claims. “Electricity has been going through that fence for several weeks now,” she posted. “... I was at the varsity game and people were touching it and it would zap/shock them, so it has been there but the electric current has been getting stronger.”

Though dozens of students apparently had known about the problem since the first football game of the season, none of them thought “it was important” enough to report it to administrators, Herrero said.

The discussion on Facebook has been spirited, garnering dozens of comments and a plea for an end to finger-pointing.

“It sounds like there were quite a few kids who knew about the ‘zaps’,” Leah Curry commented. “But you know, kids are kids. If it didn’t hurt them enough to think, hey that’s weird, I should mention it ... it was most likely written off as a static electricity shock. No one could have known that this was going to happen at that point in time.

“It’s scary because all we can do right now is speculate and draw our own conclusions,” she continued. “I have no doubt that they are doing everything they can to figure this out, as quickly as they can. And I look forward to getting the answers.”

DTE Energy Erica Donerson told MLive/The Ann Arbor News said the utility has determined its overhead wires and other equipment were not a factor in the accident.

As of Wednesday evening, authorities had no more information about what caused the shock, Michigan State Police Detective Jim Bundshuh said.

Friday night’s football game between Ypsilanti Lincoln and Chelsea has been moved from Lincoln to Ann Arbor Pioneer High School.