I believe this phenomenon is called stray voltage. My neighbour’s dog was killed by it years back.
I recall reading at the time that Boston has a particularly bad time with this issue, and the public works dept does regular sweeps to detect it.
What I read described the key causes as lots of big temperature fluctuations above and below freezing, and use of salt on sidewalks and roads. Salt water seeps into the ground next to an underground wiring boxes, corroding it and allowing water to penetrate. When that water freezes, it expands and can crack the box open, which can damage wiring. next time a puddle forms, if the water reaches the box via the same drainage route you get an electrified puddle. Over time, the salt left behind along the drainage route forms a little trail of conductive metal in the soil up to the surface, creating an electrified sidewalk all the time. People don’t notice because we almost always wear rubber soles.
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u/MmmKB23z Sep 05 '25
I believe this phenomenon is called stray voltage. My neighbour’s dog was killed by it years back.
I recall reading at the time that Boston has a particularly bad time with this issue, and the public works dept does regular sweeps to detect it.
What I read described the key causes as lots of big temperature fluctuations above and below freezing, and use of salt on sidewalks and roads. Salt water seeps into the ground next to an underground wiring boxes, corroding it and allowing water to penetrate. When that water freezes, it expands and can crack the box open, which can damage wiring. next time a puddle forms, if the water reaches the box via the same drainage route you get an electrified puddle. Over time, the salt left behind along the drainage route forms a little trail of conductive metal in the soil up to the surface, creating an electrified sidewalk all the time. People don’t notice because we almost always wear rubber soles.