SAN ANTONIO – A man died after he was electrocuted while attempting to trim tree branches for a neighbor, according to the San Antonio Fire Department.
SAFD Battalion Chief Ed Rohmer said units were dispatched just after 8 a.m. on Wednesday to the 800 block of South San Dario Avenue for an electrocution call.
Upon arrival, officials found a man, whom the Bexar County Medical Examiner’s Office later identified as 40-year-old Alex Quintanilla. Quintanilla was still hanging from his safety harness in a tree.
He appeared to have struck a power line with a pole saw and was electrocuted, Rohmer said. The saw was still balanced in the branches when KSAT arrived at the scene.
SAFD Technical Rescue eventually brought Quintanilla down from the tree. To be safe, Rohmer said they waited until CPS Energy workers came out to physically de-energize the power line.
"Once we determined that it was going to be a recovery — and not a rescue — we definitely took our time," Rohmer said.
Quintanilla was pronounced dead on the scene at 9:25 a.m.
His pastor, Jose Coronado, came out after getting a call from Quintanilla’s wife.
Coronado said he believed Quintanilla was originally from Honduras and that cutting trees was his first job.
“He helps people around here, you know, doing chores and everything that he could help people,” Coronado told KSAT.
Coronado said his wife, who is also a pastor, was with Quintanilla’s wife, taking care of her.
“I know we’re going to miss him a lot because he used to take care of us, too, at the church,” Coronado said. “Whenever we needed something, he was there to do everything. And you know, we’re gonna miss him."
CPS Energy said only professionals are allowed to trim near the primary, high-voltage power lines. If a tree is interfering with one of the primary power lines, customers can request the utility come and trim it.
Customers can trim branches near the electric service line between the pole and their home, but CPS Energy asks customers to call five business days in advance of the work so the line can be temporarily removed.
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