W. Helton Sellers rescued T. Frank Davis from electric shock, Chesterfield, South Carolina, December 5, 1941. Frank, 14, schoolboy, took hold of a steel rod that was suspended on a guy wire that was in contact with a wire carrying 2,300 volts of electricity. He fell to the ground, which was wet, and lay unconscious, his hand still in contact with the rod. Helton, 14, schoolboy, whose shoes were damp, with his fist struck the rod, sustained a violent shock, and was knocked to the ground. He got to his feet, with one foot kicked the rod, and again was shocked and fell to the ground. Obtaining a damp branch, from which a twig extended at an angle, he engaged the rod in the fork, bent the twig around the rod, and held the twig against the branch. Some current passed through the branch, but Helton endured it. He then jerked the rod from Frank’s hand and released the branch, and the rod swung away from Frank. Helton was uninjured. Frank was revived. He had sustained severe but not fatal burns. 39336-3262
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