A Hampton man will have a lot to be thankful for this Thanksgiving after narrowly escaping death Tuesday afternoon. Using a jackhammer he inadvertently cut into an electric cable carrying 12,500 volts of electricity.

Suffolk’s Emergency Services Coordinator Jim Judkins said the victim, Bob Wiscerson, 42, was transported to Obici Hospital’s emergency room for only minor injuries.

Wiscerson, an employee of Rosenbaum Fence Co. of Virginia Beach, was working with a crew installing fencing at the Lipton Tea plant in the 1000 block of West Washington Street. The incident took place about 1:20 p.m., and businesses and homes in the downtown area briefly lost power for a short while.

When paramedics, firefighters and police arrived on the scene, Wiscerson told them he was &uot;hurting all over.&uot; Paramedics attending him said the accident could have been fatal. The only injuries the victim sustained were second-degree burns of the left thumb and scorched hair. He told officials that he remember only seeing a flash and then jumping backwards.

Officials at the scene classified the incident as an industrial accident. Wiscerson told officials that underground utilities were marked on the street, but there were no markings in the place where he was digging.