MEDIA RELEASE

Police are investigating a fatal industrial accident Thursday, April 25 in the Puna District.

At about 9:14 a.m., police and Fire Departmebt medics received a report of an apparent industrial accident at a job site just off Route 11 near the North Kulani Road intersection in Mountain View.

Responding officers discovered that a 56-year-old man had been inspecting the electrical system for a newly installed water tank when he apparently was electrocuted from the energized system.

A 51-year-old Honokaa man, who was working nearby, attempted to assist the victim. He was able to de-energize the electrical system but not before sustaining minor injuries from exposure to electrical current.

The victim was taken to Hilo Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead at 10:32 a.m.

Detectives from the Area I Criminal Investigations Section are conducting further investigation into this incident, which is classified as an industrial accident and a coroner’s inquest.

Police are awaiting positive identification and notification of the next of kin before releasing the name of the victim.

An autopsy is scheduled for Friday, April 26 to determine the exact cause of death.

UPDATED (5/1/2013 at 6:7 PM)

Hawaiʻi Island police have identified the man who died in an industrial accident in Mountain View on April 25 as 56-year-old Yves Morel of Raleigh, North Carolina.

An autopsy conducted Friday (April 26) determined that he died from high voltage electrocution.