A family who lost their "top man" after he was electrocuted by 11,000 volts while helping out an old friend have said their lives will never be the same.
Jonathan Huw Howells, known as Huw, died on November 8, 2020 after the telehandler he was operating came into close proximity to overhead power lines at Dan y Coed Farm in Llawhaden, Narberth, an inquest has heard.
The 61-year-old never touched the power cables but the electricity "jumped the gap" to the metal boom of the machine and travelled towards the ground through Mr Howells.
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The inquest, at Haverfordwest County Hall, was held before a jury on January 20. In a report read out by coroner's officer Lisa Jenkins it was heard how Mr Howells was outside the vehicle but had leaned into the cab with his feet outside and still stood on the ground. There was nothing anyone could do in the farmyard as two wheels of the machine burst into flames and Mr Howells was "clearly being electrocuted".
Described as a "capable" and "careful" worker by his family, Mr Howells was helping clear some trees overhanging telephone wires in the farmyard belonging to Thomas Davies, known as Emrys.
Mr Davies, 85, wanted to install a careline package to help him continue to live independently but was having trouble with the telephone connection. Mr Howells, an assistant mechanic and farmer from Lampeter Velfrey and always willing to help out where he could, offered to take a look. He'd already spent the day clearing some trees in another part of the farm as a favour for his longstanding friend with the help of another friend, Brian Twose.
Mr Howells manoeuvred his Merlo telehandler beneath the telephone wires while Mr Twose looked on and guided him. Mr Howells jumped out of the cab to satisfy himself his telehandler would allow him to reach the overhanging branches, before walking back to the machine. It was at the moment he reached in to push a button to bring the boom down that it moved upwards instead for "reasons unknown".
In his statement, read out by senior coroner for Pembrokeshire and Carmarthenshire Paul Bennett, Mr Twose said Mr Howells was "well aware" of the power lines nearby. He said: "I could clearly see a gap between the boom and the line. I shouted something like 'Woah now, that's high enough'."
"I assumed he would bring the arm of the boom down, I don't know what he did," said Mr Twose, who was at the farm with his wife and Mr Davies' daughter. "I screamed for him to stop but with that the electricity arced on to the boom. He was bolt upright holding on to one of the handles.
"I shouted to him to let go but I knew he couldn't hear me."
Mr Twose attempted to pull Mr Howells away from the machine but in doing so, he received an electric shock which caused him to collapse. Shouting at the others to call 999, he ran into a nearby shed to find some wood to help Mr Howells, but at that point, Mr Howells let go and collapsed to the ground.
Mr Twose immediately started chest compressions on Mr Howells until paramedics arrived. Mr Twose added: "I could see what had happened to Huw and I knew he was no longer with us." Mr Howells, a former pupil at Ysgol Preseli, was pronounced dead at the scene at 5.42pm.
A post mortem report, carried out by consultant pathologist Dr John Murphy, confirmed Mr Howells died as a result of electrocution. The medical cause of death was given as cardiorespiratory arrest, electrocution and farmyard accident.
Mr Twose said he was "extremely saddened" by the whole incident, especially since Mr Howells, who's first job after school was with Pembroke power station, was a "reliable and trustworthy" person while operating machinery. He had 40 years experience of "tree work" and was a competent operator of farm machinery and his telehandler.
In the days before the accident, Mr Howells had worked alongside a team from Western Power Distribution (WPD) adjacent to powerlines. Speaking during the inquest the family said his fellow workers had spoken "very highly of him" and everybody was "very proud" of the way he did his work.
The Health and Safety Executive were called to the scene after being notified by WPD, who were also present at the farmyard. They did not investigate as Mr Howells was not working as a self-employed person but merely doing a friend a favour with his own machine. Giving evidence to the inquest, Steven Eades said the overhead powerlines would have been carrying 11,000 volts and that guidance indicates a three-metre exclusion zone should be maintained while working in close proximity.
"You don't necessarily have to make direct contact with overhead powerlines," he said, explaining the "arcing effect" of electricity. In other words, said Mr Bennet, the electricity supply was "jumping the gap" to find another point of contact, which in this instance, was Mr Howells himself. An "automatic closure system" would have subsequently cut off the electricity supply, Mr Eades added.
Mr Bennett said it was clear that Mr Howells was doing a job which "was not something he undertook lightly" while Rhys Hughes, also from the HSE, said it was clear Mr Howells was a "very competent worker". Pointing to a lapse of concentration or a lapse of consideration, Mr Hughes said it was a "very unfortunate accident". Even if it was just preliminary work to check the tree height, "it was still coming into proximity to live conductors", he added.
"The guidance doesn't seem to have been followed in this tragic case."
Summing up for the jury, Mr Bennett said: "It might well have been a lapse of concentration, where he simply forgot about where he was in relation to the boom and in the process of leaning into the cab something occurred to move the boom upwards and bringing it into the exclusion zone that the guidance talks about."
The jury returned a conclusion of accidental death.
Speaking after the inquest on January 20, Mr Howell's wife, Cathy, and daughters Julia and Rosie, said: "As a family, our lives will never be the same again. We have lost our ‘top man’ - top husband, top dad, top brother and top friend. He was a special part of so many lives and is missed incredibly.
"Huw was hugely experienced in so many skills and aspects of life. We take comfort in knowing he was doing a job he loved at a place he loved."
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