26-year-old Joshua Pocknell was carrying out routine maintenance on hedges beside the A3102 near Royal Wootton Bassett on April 19, 2024, when the incident happened.
Shortly after midnight, he was pushing a mobile lighting tower when it made contact with an overhead power line, a court heard.
CCTV footage shows the moment Josh received an electric shock, as he felt he “couldn’t let go” of the lighting tower.
He was rushed to hospital with life threatening injuries and spent five weeks recovering.
On Friday, May 1, Upton Specialised Tree Services Ltd was fined £60,000 and ordered to pay £6,237 in costs at Bristol Magistrates’ Court after admitting health and safety breaches.
Joshua said: “My whole body locked and I felt hot and cramping. I could hear the electricity in my head and thought I was going to die.
“I hit the floor and passed out, still cramping. I later discovered a hole had burnt through my arm and hip all the way to the bone.”
Joshua added that he does not think he will be able to return to his job.
He said: “My injuries were complex and challenging and there were five or six different surgeons involved in my treatment.
“I still experience considerable pain and strange bodily sensations, including nerve pain and itching.
“This incident has torn the life from beneath me and I don’t think I will be able to return to the job that I used to love.”
A Health and Safety Executive (HSE) investigation into the incident found employer Upton Specialist Tree Services had requested a permit to carry out the work at nighttime due to traffic flow needs on the A3102.
However, the company had failed to adequately plan for the dangers posed by overhead power lines.
It did not implement suitable control measures, such as barriers, instruction or training in operating the mobile lighting tower.
The company, based in Wimborne, Dorset, pleaded guilty to a breach of the Electricity at Work Regulations.
HSE inspector Tom Preston said: “Joshua is lucky to be alive.
“Overhead electrical power lines present extreme risks to workers, but the risks can and must be controlled.
“In this case, a worker sustained severe injuries in a traumatic incident for all concerned that was entirely preventable.
“HSE will take action against those who fail to take the steps necessary to protect people at work.”
