Bunker v. Association of Missouri Electric Coop.

Bunker v. Association of Missouri Electric Coop.

Opinion

 [*609]  The appellant, Terry Bunker, was employed by Nodaway Worth Electric Cooperative (hereafter "Nodaway") as a groundman. Nodaway is a member of the Association of Missouri Electric Cooperatives (hereafter "the Association"), the defendant respondent. The Association is a non-profit organization which provides various services to its members, including safety training. Bunker brought suit against the Association alleging it failed to exercise reasonable care in furnishing educational services to him and his co-employees in safety [**2]  matters which caused his injuries. The trial court granted defendant's motion for summary judgment on the grounds that there was no genuine issue of material fact. The events which gave rise to this litigation are as follows.

The plaintiff was hired by Nodaway in June 1981, at which time he was 21 years old and had a high school diploma. On March 27, 1983, an ice storm swept through Worth County and downed a  [*610]  "phase" line which the plaintiff's team was sent to repair. The team consisted of Mr. Fred Poppa, operations manager of Nodaway, Mr. Barry McClelland, and the plaintiff. The damage was done to a single phase system. This type of system consists of two wires, one on top of the other. The top line was a phase wire, which was energized; the bottom line was a neutral wire. The storm had broken the top line, or phase wire. The team cut down the phase wire and let it remain on the ground. It then used the existing neutral wire to replace the downed phase wire. Because the team had been working long hours, this was their last job, and it was a quick method of getting the power back on, they did not dispose of the phase wire or replace the neutral. The repair is described [**3]  as an "open neutral." Service was restored to the area. This method of repair is not an acceptable procedure, although it is done.

Four days following the initial repair, the plaintiff, along with others, were sent to make final repairs to the downed line. Upon arrival, the plaintiff got out of his truck and began pulling the cut line out of the bushes where the phase line had been dropped when the open neutral repair was done. He apparently came in contact with a wire lopped over the phase wire. The downed line was touching the energized line causing it to be charged with 7200 volts of electricity. Although rubber gloves were in the truck, he did not wear them. Bunker received serious injuries.

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