Freire

Cotton Construction Company contracted to build a school in Holtville for the Holtville Union High School District. Cotton subcontracted electrical work to Encanto Electric Company. Encanto employed plaintiff Albert E. Freire. At the construction site, a utility pole owned and installed by defendant Imperial Irrigation District fell and injured plaintiff.

The school district’s plans called for a junction or pull box connecting underground wiring from the school and the pole wires about 10 feet east of the pole site. Encanto dug a trench for electrical conduit terminating about 10 feet east of the pole site. Defendant then installed the 35-foot pole 5% feet into the ground in a normal, customary manner providing adequate support.

Defendant required the plans be changed to place the pull box on the pole, at ground level on the north side. Encanto, responsible to bring the conduit to the pull box, extended the trench to the east side of the pole, exposing the east side of the pole two feet below ground, the dirt then sloping two feet east to the bottom of the trench. Defendant had not instructed Encanto to extend the trench to the east side of the pole. Encanto directed plaintiff…