County Coroner releases report on electrocution

Whitman Coroner Peter Martin reported Sept. 15 on his investigation of the death of James C. Hussey, 38, the Peck, Idaho, man who was electrocuted while working with a rock crushing crew at the Doneen pit east of Oakesdale Tuesday morning, Sept. 13.

Martin said Mr. Hussey came in contact with 500 volts when he attempted to disconnect a line from a terminal at a generator. Martin said Hussey, who was an experienced member of the DeAtley Crushing Service, was hit when he attempted to disconnect the terminal with a metal wrench after apparently assuming the connection was not live.

Members of the crew performed CPR on the scene in an attempt to revive him, but they were unsuccessful.

The crew was working at the Doneen rock quarry which is on the Warner road east of Oakesdale.

Mr. Hussey was pronounced dead at the scene by a flight nurse on a Medstar helicopter which was called to the scene. The nurse made the determination after contacting doctors in Spokane.

The coroner said his investigation determined nothing was faulty with the equipment at the scene. He noted other workers on the site were in the process of getting a testing device to check the connection when Hussey apparently decided to go ahead with the task of disconnecting the line with a wrench.

The death is also under investigation by the Office of Mining Safety and Health Administration. Mr. Hussey was transported by Kramer Funeral Home to Palouse.

The family of the victim plans to conduct a celebration of his life for family and friends at a later date.

Mr. Hussey was born in Inglewood, Calif., Feb. 26, 1973, and moved to this area as a youngster. He attended schools in the Tri-Cities and at Lewiston. Among survivors are a wife, four children and two step-children.