NY man electrocuted while peeing on subway rail


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A drunken man was electrocuted and killed relieving himself on the third rail in Brooklyn this morning, sources said.

 

Matthew Zeno, 30, was walking with a friend along the tracks for the southbound G train around 3:10 a.m., at Union Avenue and Broadway in Williamsburg when the horrific accident occurred, cops said.

 

His 26-year-old pal tried saving him and was also shocked, police added. The friend was able to flag down MTA workers, who in turn called for help, sources said.

 

Both men were rushed to Woodhull Hospital where Zeno died and the second man was listed in stable condition.

 

The pair were returning from a bar, cops said.

 

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I'm pretty sure this thing was debunked on MythBusters a while ago. In fact, I've seen cleaning guys spray water on an active third rail on several occasions here in Amsterdam myself. They weren't wearing any protective clothing and still nothing happened.

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Yeah, more than likely he was killed when he STEPPED on the third rail while relieving himself, which in turn electrocuted his friend when he tried to yank him off. He didn't get shocked to death through a stream of urine.

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I watched this on mythbusters, they busted the myth of getting electrocuted peeing on a track. Maybe he stepped on it while peeing

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I'm pretty sure this thing was debunked on MythBusters a while ago. In fact, I've seen cleaning guys spray water on an active third rail on several occasions here in Amsterdam myself. They weren't wearing any protective clothing and still nothing happened.

 

Yes! http://dsc.discovery.com/tv-shows/mythbusters/videos/peeing-on-third-rail-minimyth.htm

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Probably other factors involved, I'd wager it's fair to assume that he was somehow earthed in another way, may have peed on his shoe or stepped in the pee.

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I'm pretty sure this thing was debunked on MythBusters a while ago. In fact, I've seen cleaning guys spray water on an active third rail on several occasions here in Amsterdam myself. They weren't wearing any protective clothing and still nothing happened.

 

This really depends...

Pure water itself does not conduct electricity. Conductivity of tap water and other "non-pure" waters depends on concentration and types of ions and other minerals and such. Water from a hose may not be conductive enough to transmit current through the flowing water and to the operator of the hose.

 

Urine on the other hand is loaded with ions, minerals, and other contaminents. Especially if one has been drinking at a bar for awhile and not consuming any water, his urine could be extremely conductive.

 

When I was in middle school, a fellow class member was shocked and severely injured (although not killed) when he decided to pee into the hand dryer...

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Missed opportunity at a great title, "Man killed relieving himself on third rail with third leg" :shifty:

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Urine isn't a stead stream of water, it breaks up in the air so electricity couldn't not have traveled up it

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This really depends...

Pure water itself does not conduct electricity. Conductivity of tap water and other "non-pure" waters depends on concentration and types of ions and other minerals and such. Water from a hose may not be conductive enough to transmit current through the flowing water and to the operator of the hose.

 

Urine on the other hand is loaded with ions, minerals, and other contaminents. Especially if one has been drinking at a bar for awhile and not consuming any water, his urine could be extremely conductive.

 

When I was in middle school, a fellow class member was shocked and severely injured (although not killed) when he decided to pee into the hand dryer...

 

It wasn't on the type of liquid (Mythbusters used real urine) it was that a stream of liquid has to stay laminar (one continuous stream) for it to conduct electricity (It can arc and jump if the current is enough but the current in train tracks isn't enough). The Mythbusters findings were that the stream of urine starts to break up after between 8 inches and a foot, so unless there are some other factors involved you would literally have to squat almost on top of the rail for your stream to conduct a fatal shock

Are you trying to say NY Post made it up?

 

No, but there were probably other factors involved.

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Are you trying to say NY Post made it up?

You actually think the media hasn't ever made mistakes in how they presented things to the publc or (intentionally) left certain facts out of the story?

 

 

This really depends...

Pure water itself does not conduct electricity. Conductivity of tap water and other "non-pure" waters depends on concentration and types of ions and other minerals and such. Water from a hose may not be conductive enough to transmit current through the flowing water and to the operator of the hose.

 

Urine on the other hand is loaded with ions, minerals, and other contaminents. Especially if one has been drinking at a bar for awhile and not consuming any water, his urine could be extremely conductive.

 

When I was in middle school, a fellow class member was shocked and severely injured (although not killed) when he decided to pee into the hand dryer...

From what I know Amsterdam drinking water has a fairly high concentration of minerals. It's very clean though. However, a lot of stuff washed with it since they were cleaning the station's platform.

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He could have been barefoot or had something metal on him that helped the electricity travel up him. BTW this is by the New York Post which is apart of News Corporation

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You actually think the media hasn't ever made mistakes in how they presented things to the publc or (intentionally) left certain facts out of the story.

 

 

From what I know Amsterdam drinking water has a fairly high concentration of minerals. It's very clean though. However, a lot of stuff washed with it since they were cleaning the station's platform.

 

This isn't some huge incident where there's hundreds of different reports coming in.  

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This isn't some huge incident where there's hundreds of different reports coming in.  

Thus mistakes can't occur or it's unthinkable the writer left certain facts out to make the story seem more interesting than it actually is?

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I'm pretty sure this thing was debunked on MythBusters a while ago. In fact, I've seen cleaning guys spray water on an active third rail on several occasions here in Amsterdam myself. They weren't wearing any protective clothing and still nothing happened.

 

this. I've seen that episode a few years ago; this incident must had other unknown factors involved.

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I'm pretty sure this thing was debunked on MythBusters a while ago. In fact, I've seen cleaning guys spray water on an active third rail on several occasions here in Amsterdam myself. They weren't wearing any protective clothing and still nothing happened.

 

 

I watched this on mythbusters, they busted the myth of getting electrocuted peeing on a track. Maybe he stepped on it while peeing

 

 

No where does the article say, that he was killed by electricity traveling 'up his urine'. :laugh:

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No where does the article say, that he was killed by electricity traveling 'up his urine'. :laugh:

You're right, nowhere. However, the way she phrases things a strong impression is given that was indeed the case.

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I'm surprised this doesn't happen on the daily to be honest. You're drunk. You have to pee. Hmm. I probably would have made the same mistake.

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