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Owner devastated after dog gets electrocuted on DC sidewalk
There are still no answers about what led to the alleged electrocution and death of two dogs in a Northwest, D.C. neighborhood. One of the dog owners spoke with FOX 5's Bob Barnard today, as he continues to try to make sense of what happened to his beloved pet.
WASHINGTON, D.C. - There are still no answers about what led to the alleged electrocution and death of two dogs in a Northwest, D.C. neighborhood.
One of the dog owners spoke with FOX 5's Bob Barnard as he continues to try to make sense of what happened to his beloved pet.
Those two dogs were killed on 19th Street, just south of M Street, across from the Wawa.
Ben Mason witnessed his dog, Chili, be electrocuted and die right in front of him.
"Chili was perfect," Mason told FOX 5.
His 5-year-old purebred English lab loved the sand and surfing, and was getting a taste of the snow at the time of the incident.
"Chili and I just picked the wrong spot. I'll never forget it," Mason said.
The two lived together in Virginia Beach and were walking to the pet-friendly hotel, Yours Truly, on Monday afternoon during a lull in the snowstorm, when Chili was apparently electrocuted.
"She stepped on a sidewalk and went in a horrible seizure. Horrible. Uncontrollable. And she had never been that way," Mason said. "There were some bystanders that just heard the horrible screech and came running up and out of their buildings."
Mason says a medical doctor in the area heard Chili's scream and ran across the street to help.
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"He bent down once, then twice, and three times, and each time he felt a current, and we were like, 'what's happening?' I guess we were protected by our soled shoes or whatever, but the poor puppy's pads are right there and we didn't know what was going on."
Chili was rushed to a nearby animal hospital. The vet says Chili was dead on arrival and decided to call 911 to report the incident. Just three hours later, D.C. police say another dog was electrocuted in the same spot.
"Our goal right now is public awareness and a crusade to make sure this doesn't happen to another pet, to another person," Mason said. "And then the grief that goes along with it. It's just gotta be preventable."
Pepco sent FOX 5 DC a statement detailing the incident. Read the full statement below:
We are aware of two incidents that occurred on Monday, January 6, near 1140 19th St. NW involving two individuals and their pets. Our thoughts continue to be with the individuals impacted by this event. The safety of our customers, communities and employees is always our top priority.
Crews conducted an inspection of the 1100 block of 19th St. NW and have confirmed that there is no stray voltage in the area and the area is safe. Pepco is conducting a thorough investigation of this incident to understand what took place and what may have caused this issue. This investigation will include industry peers and third-party experts. We expect the full investigation to take approximately 60 days (about 2 months).