By Joseph Cyr
Staff Writer
NEW LIMERICK — A 44-year-old New Limerick man was killed Friday evening while responding to a report of a power outage.
Mark Miles, an electric utility lineman for Eastern Maine Electric, was found unresponsive near an exposed power line to a home on the Burton Road, according to Maine State Police. The exact time of the incident was not reported, but occurred after dark.
An official with the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration was in Aroostook County Monday trying to determine what may have caused the apparent electrocution.
A seasoned lineman, Miles had been employed by the cooperative since September 2012.
“Our hearts and our thoughts will be with Mark’s family, now and in the days and months ahead,” said CEO Scott Hallowell. Eastern Maine Electric Cooperative is a not-for-profit, consumer-owned electric utility serving approximately 3,000 square miles of rural Maine in Washington, Aroostook and Penobscot
counties.
Miles was transported to Houlton Regional Hospital by ambulance, where he was pronounced dead.
“It appeared that Miles made contact with the power lines which resulted in his death,” said Maine State Police Sgt. Chad Fuller.
Trooper Nicholas Casavant is the primary investigator and was assisted by Fuller.
