Rescue workers are shown here carefully lowering a man who was severely burned by an electrical wire Thursday at approximately 3:30 p.m. while riding atop a house that was being relocated. The man, whose identity was unavailable at press time, was airlifted to a burn center in Augusta Ga. (Ledger photo / TIM GULLA) A man helping to guide a home moving project on Union Highway suffered electrical burns to his hands and arms Thursday afternoon while trying to lift up a live electrical line hanging above the roadway.

A witness at the scene said the man, whose name wasn’t immediately available, crumpled immediately on the roof of the moving home.

“I was crying, please let him be OK,” said Penny Coleman, who lives just a few houses away from where the accident took place. “Oh God, please let him be OK.”

Authorities at the scene relayed that the man suffered what appeared to be 3rd-degree burns to his hands and arms. An emergency helicopter from Spartanburg Regional Medical Center was called to the scene and transported the man from a landing zone on nearby East Junior High Road. The man reportedly was flown directly to a burn treatment center in Augusta. His condition wasn’t immediately available at press time.

The power line belongs to Duke Energy, officials at the scene said. The emergency response to the electrocution, as well as the large house still in the roadway, forced officials to close that stretch of Union Highway and detour all traffic around the scene.

Officials were still at the scene as of 5:30 p.m.

The single-story home was being moved by National House Movers of Greer, according to a sign on the cab of the truck. It wasn’t immediately clear where the home was being moved.

Gaffney Fire Department Training and Safety Officer Scott Coleman said the burn victim was riding on top of the home during the move. He said the crew was trimming branches and moving wires as the truck advanced.

One resident at the scene, who is an electrician, said the wire the man touched likely carried 7,200 volts of electricity.