Authorities ID 8-year-old electrocuted in Todd County
Authorities released the name of the 8-year-old boy who was killed Monday night in central Minnesota, after he apparently stepped into a shallow pool of electrified water.
The boy, Wendel Lamor Fox, was found by a relative shortly after 8:30 p.m. on a rural Browerville farm, according to Todd County Sheriff Peter Mikkelson.
Fox was standing in a puddle of water near a large barn fan when the accident happened, officials said.
"The ground is really moist, [there's] a lot of standing water," Mikkelson said. "So we need to educate people, and let them know that water is definitely a conductor and can cause problems."
Create a More Connected Minnesota
MPR News is your trusted resource for the news you need. With your support, MPR News brings accessible, courageous journalism and authentic conversation to everyone - free of paywalls and barriers. Your gift makes a difference.
Deputies arrived at the farm and performed CPR on the boy until an ambulance arrived and transported him to the Long Prairie Hospital, where he was later pronounced dead.
Authorities are still investigating the accident, but Mikkelson said faulty wiring on the fan may have caused the water to become electrified. He said people need to be especially careful when they do their own electrical work around the house.
"Homeowners are allowed to do their own electrical work and it all needs to be inspected," Mikkelson said. "I think at times some of these places don't get inspected properly, and maybe the wiring or the electrical work isn't up to par."
Fox was the first person to be electrocuted in Todd County in nearly 20 years, since a man hit a power line and was electrocuted while exiting his car, Mikkelson said.