One person was killed and two others critically injured at a lake in Arizona on Sunday night after a possible electrocution incident, according to officials.
The Peoria Fire Department said crews were originally dispatched to a report of a possible drowning at Scorpion Bay on Lake Pleasant, located north of Phoenix.
Peoria Fire Captain Mario Bravo said that as more information came in during the response officials learned they weren’t just dealing with a drowning.
“It is believed to be more of an electrocution incident,” Bravo told reporters.
According to Bravo, it is believed the electrocution incident happened at the end of a dock at Scorpion Bay.
Units arriving on the scene found five patients in total. Two were transported to an area hospital in critical condition. Two others suffered injuries that were not life-threatening and refused transport. One later died at the hospital.
Bravo said when fire crews arrived on the scene, they discovered there was an electric current in the water and had to secure the dock before entering the lake.
“At that time we knew the water was energized and none of our firefighters were to go in it until we could secure the electricity to the dock,” he told reporters.
Once the dock was secured after a few minutes, rescue crews were able to assist those near the dock. No officials were hurt responding to the scene.
“This was an isolated incident,” Bravo said.
In a news conference held on July 13, officials with the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office, who has taken over the ongoing investigation, say two brothers and their wives were at the Lake Pleasant area when the incident occurred at around 6:30 p.m. on July 12, when a man identified as 53-year-old Timothy Miller, jumped into the water for unknown reasons. MCSO officials said Timothy went underwater, and bystanders were later able to pull out Michael and one of the wives of the victims.
Michael was taken to the hospital, where he later passed away. Timothy’s remains were found during the early morning hours of July 13 by members of the dive team.
