Pokagon man, stepson electrocuted by wires

Published 11:16 pm Monday, June 20, 2005

By Staff
Cass County Sheriff Joseph M. Underwood Jr. reports his deputies investigated two accidental deaths Saturday morning in Pokagon Township.
The incident occurred at 58743 Edwards St., where Manuel Bermudez Jr., 41, and his stepson, Orlando Galvin, 18, were both electrocuted while raising a 40-foot pole into the air near their home. The pole made contact with some powerlines, according to Deputy Steve Keene. Both subjects were transported to area hospitals - Bermudez to Borgess-Lee Memorial in Dowagiac and Galvin to Lakeland Hospital, Niles - where they were pronounced dead on arrival.
Deputies were assisted with the 11:02 a.m. incident June 19 by Dowagiac police and Pokagon Band tribal police.
Dowagiac ambulance and SMCAS from Niles transported the two individuals.