Auto Mechanic Receives a Shock

DETROIT - It was a shocking shop accident for a Detroit auto mechanic who can thank his co-worker for saving his life.

"He came walking out (and) his whole body was like convulsing, and we all thought he was joking. We were laughing," said Sam MacDonald.

The mechanics at T&S Auto Specialists on the southwest side of Detroit quickly learned Kevin Mullins was not joking.

This all started when the mechanic attempted to move an electrical outlet from one wall to another. His first mistake was not shutting off the power.

"As he was pulling the wires through the tube, the tape came off the wires and touched the inside of the tube that he was holding on to," MacDonald said. "He was back here for at least twenty seconds yelling. ... And then he came stomping out of the room holding the thing to his chest."

Luckily, his other co-worker, Richard Taylor, realized what was happening and grabbed a broom. "When he started to shake, I knew something was wrong so I ran over and got the broom and knocked the wire from him," he said.

We are told 220 volts of electricity shocked Mullins' body for at least 40 seconds.

"It burnt his hands bad... the front of his hands to the back. It burnt to his chest, and I called 9-1-1," said MacDonald.

Emergency crews rushed Mullins to the hospital where they were able to stop the electricity from literally cooking his body.

Mullins, who recently moved here from Kentucky to find work, lived with his aunt's family, who just found out what happened.

"It's just scary. You just (don't) ever know what's going to happen from one minute to the next," said his aunt Donna Mullins.

Taylor says he is not a hero, he just did what he had to do. "I'm just glad I could be here to help him. I'm glad I was here to see it because if I hadn't been in the shop, wouldn't have saw it," he said.

We are told Mullins received third-degree burns on his chest and hands, but he is going to be okay.