Lake electrocutes puppy

An afternoon walk in a south Miami-Dade park ended in tragedy for a South Florida man when his dog was killed after jumping into a lake. It happened at the Perrine Wayside Dog Park at SW 164th Street and S. Dixie Highway. Victor Garcia said he was walking with his 6-month old Labrador Retriever Ruger Wednesday afternoon when he threw an object into the park's man-made lake for the dog to fetch.

Garcia said he loves the park and its lake. "It's one of the few places you can take your dog to swim without worrying about alligators or anything like that," said Garcia. After the dog jumped in Garcia said it began acting strangely.



"All of a sudden, as he got closer to the centre of the fountain, he started screaming, yelping, bloody murder," said Garcia. He immediately ran into the lake to rescue his dog but when he felt shocks from what felt like an electrical current he scrambled back to land. "I could feel the electricity just running through my body. I myself almost drowned," said Garcia. "I just couldn't pass this wall of electricity and I had to watch my best friend drown right in front of my face, essentially, I mean that dog is my whole entire world to me, he's the reason I wake up in the morning."

Garcia was unhurt, his dog was killed. Park officials say at the time of the incident the fountain in the centre of the lake was turned off. Electricians with Palmetto Bay have removed the fountain to inspect it. They also plan to send it the manufacturer to see if they can detect any defects. Police are also looking to see if lines used to power the fountain may somehow how transfer electricity to the water despite the fountain being off.

With news video.