Lucky escape after pool electrocution

However, a romantic dip in their swimming pool soon turned into a nightmare after Patrick, 59, an L J Hooker Bankstown real estate agent, touched the plastic covering of a pool light to see why it wasn’t working.
“I heard a scream and turned around and saw Pat curled up like a snail; I thought for sure he was having a heart attack but he’d been electrocuted,” Tina, 55, explained.
“I pulled him out of the water and was getting zapped myself as I touched him.
“He seemed ok and raced inside to turn off the safety switch but when he came back out, he looked really bad and then went downhill.
“The ambulance arrived in five minutes and we were both admitted to Bankstown Hospital; the staff really looked after us but Pat couldn’t walk for two days since the magnesium had drained out of his body and he still can’t run, his legs are still so badly bruised.
“It could have been so much worse if it happened when our pregnant daughters Bianca and Daniela, son Anthony and three-year-old grandson Levi were in the pool or they could have come over to find us both electrocuted or drowned.
“I believe our guardian angels were watching over us, especially my mother and father-in-law and that Pat had to take one for the family to keep the rest of us safe.”
Patrick said: “I couldn’t move and I couldn’t believe it, I thought ‘is this how I’m going to die?’
“I was so lucky Tina was there. I was in lots of pain for a couple of days and they couldn’t give me painkillers since I had an irregular heartbeat afterwards but everything is going well now.
“We wanted to warn other families about having lights near pools; we’ve gotten rid of ours. A faulty transformer had two bolts missing on top and water was getting in adding to the problem plus our safety switch was 12 years old and only covered half the circuit boards.
“It’s vital to get your transformers checked and don’t rely on safety switches.”