About 30 to 50 workers in every 100,000 are killed doing utility line work every year, and many more suffer non-fatal but life-changing loss of limbs from electrical burns and trauma. With a fatality rate more than twice that of police officers and fire fighters, utility line work is one of the ten most dangerous jobs in the U.S.
Arc flash events are a clear and present danger. Exposure to their intense heat for one-tenth of a second can cause a second-degree burn. Temperatures of 205⁰ F will cause a third-degree burn, leading to complete skin loss in the exposed areas.