Girl dies in Dominican Republic after stepping on a live wire while walking barefoot on the beach
A teenager died after stepping on an exposed live wire while walking barefoot on a beach on the last day of her family vacation in the Dominican Republic.
The tragic incident took place in the last week of August after Melina Caputa, 17, from Argentina, traveled with her grandparents and siblings to Punta Cana, a resort town in the Dominican Republic. On her way back to her hotel with her siblings and cousins, she walked up a flight of metal stairs and reached a bridge when she stepped on the exposed wire, the Sun reported.
Caputa was instantly electrocuted in front of the others and immediately lost consciousness. Although the emergency services responded to the scene soon after, their efforts to resuscitate her failed. She was pronounced dead at the scene.
Although the authorities are still waiting for the results of an official autopsy, preliminary investigation revealed that Caputa died from cardio-respiratory failure. Be Live of Bayahibe, part of the hotel chain Globalia, where Caputa and her family were staying has since released a statement there was no live wiring on their premises.
Caputa was doing her sixth degree of orientation of Natural Sciences at a school in San Juan, Argentina. Caputa's father, who was not on the trip, flew to the Dominican Republican after receiving the tragic news. A number of her loved ones have since posted messages on social media, fondly remembering Caputa.
Her brother Leandro wrote an emotional post on his Instagram profile: "I saw you being born, I saw you growing up, I saw you fighting, I saw you crying, I saw you smiling, I saw you dreaming. I know you were a good-intentioned person, as you were always fighting for the defenseless, I apologize my love for not being able to do more to have you by my side." He was reportedly one of the people who witnessed her electrocution.
Caputa's friend Nicolas Baistrocchi wrote: "We both thought that if we were going to separate, it would be when we are old, but I never imagined that I was going to lose you so soon."
The last message that she ever posted on her Instagram page before her untimely death was "me voy despidiendo" which translates to "I am saying goodbye."