Couple suing over stray volts in home

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POUND RIDGE, N.Y., Sept. 12 (UPI) -- Residents in a well-to-do New York suburb said stray voltage from a nearby electrical substation is leaking into their home causing all manner of problems.

As a result, next month they're taking the electric company to court.

Millie and Hal Mendelson of Pound Ridge, N.Y., in Westchester County, said the substation, operated by New York State Electric and Gas, has caused stray electricity to zap their home. Millie Mendelson told the New York Daily News she has been shocked numerous times over a 15-year span, including once while swimming in her pool.

"It was one of the scariest things you could ever experience," she said. "I was knocked back, I got a jolt and I got out of the pool and I have not been in there since."

Hal Mendelson was forced to move the psychiatry practice he had at the couple's 200-year-old home. Two horses kept on the property had to be given away after constantly rearing, once causing Hal Mendelson to break his leg. Other pets have "gone crazy," the couple say.

Millie Mendelson, 65, said she has constant headaches and regularly wears rubber gloves while cleaning to prevent shocks. Hal Mendelson, 76, said he's had neurological problems including his face once drooping uncontrollably.

A NYSEG spokesman told the Daily News, "The safety of our customers and employees is of paramount importance to us, and we comply with the New York State Public Service Commission's rigorous stray voltage testing and repair requirements."

The company declined to comment further because of the Mendelsons' lawsuit.