Kids receive electric shocks while playing on swings in playground under high-voltage power lines
At least two children reported being "jolted" on equipment in High Brooms, Kent
KIDS as young as three received electric shocks while playing on swings in a playground surrounded by 132,000-volt power lines.
At least two children reported being "jolted" by a live current running through playground equipment on Greggs Wood Road in High Brooms, Kent.
Local resident Shaun Veness was pushing his daughter Poppy, 3, on a swing when she started crying in pain.
He said: "I popped her on the swings, gave her a push and felt a bit of static.
"I pushed her again and she stated crying, saying it hurt. When I took her off I felt the chain, it wasn't static, it was a running current
"It felt like a cattle fence, my hair was on end all day."
Mum-of-two Rachel Betts, who lives in the local area, said: "It's horrific, me and my husband couldn't believe it."
Sitting directly under a power line carrying 132,000 volts, it is thought that the electricity was making the playground equipment a hazard.
Shaun made the complaint and the three pieces of equipment were removed on the same day.
A spokesman from Electrical Safety First said: "This is not simply a case of static but a possible live current running through the chains of these children's swings."
The dangerous playground is on a housing estate where many young families live, developed by Town and Country Planning Association.
A spokesman from the agency has said that this bizarre incident "seems to be as a result of the unique weather conditions.