A Pittsburgh woman and her dog experienced a terrifying ordeal when they were unexpectedly thrown into convulsions by a live electrical current. This alarming event occurred while they were out for a jog on a city sidewalk, according to local authorities.

The incident, which took place on a Tuesday afternoon, happened near a light pole at the intersection of Smallman Street and 11th Street in the Strip District. The scene unfolded dramatically when Montana Mitchell’s dog, Denim, began howling and convulsing after stepping onto rain-drenched concrete that had become electrified.

In an attempt to rescue her dog, Mitchell herself received a shock, causing her to collapse. Officials suspect that a stray current leaking from a city-owned streetlight pole was the source of the electrical hazard.

This frightening occurrence has prompted an urgent investigation and reignited concerns, especially in light of a similar tragic incident of electrocution that happened in Pittsburgh less than two years ago.

Reflecting on the ordeal, Mitchell described the incident in a detailed Instagram post, noting, “He reacted like he was being tased.”

‘He reacted like he was being tased,’ Mitchell later wrote in a lengthy Instagram post.

Witnesses said both Mitchell and the dog went down, their bodies seizing, as the electrical current surged through the streetlight pole and into the rain-soaked concrete beneath their feet.

Mitchell said the moment turned frantic as she tried to save her dog.

Montana Mitchell is seen recovering in her hospital bed after a routine jog turned terrifying when a live electrical current surged through a city sidewalk causing her to convulse

Both Mitchell and Denim were hospitalized and later released, physically stable but shaken. Denim is seen in a younger photo

City officials confirmed the pole involved was city-owned and has since been taken offline

‘I was shocked through him while trying to rip off his collar and drag him to safety,’ she wrote.

A passerby, whom Mitchell later described as a ‘guardian angel’, stopped, helped pull Denim away from the pole, and drove Mitchell back to her car. 

From there, the ordeal escalated into a race for medical care.

Denim was rushed to an emergency veterinary hospital, where doctors ran a battery of tests amid fears he had suffered internal injuries. 

Mitchell also went to the emergency room herself.

‘Physically okay,’ she wrote. ‘Emotionally, still very shaken.’

Doctors said Denim may have fluid in his lungs and is being closely monitored, but tests so far have been normal. 

Mitchell was released after her own tests came back clear.

Mitchell shared her story publicly to warn other runners and dog owners about the hidden danger

The incident happened near Smallman Street and 11th Street in Pittsburgh’s Strip District

Her dog, Denim, had violent convulsions after stepping onto electrified rain-soaked concrete  near a light pole

She said she agonized over whether to make the incident public but ultimately decided others needed to know.

‘What’s terrifying is this has happened before in Pittsburgh,’ she wrote. ‘Almost exactly a year ago, a woman and her dog were electrocuted in a similar situation, and the dog didn’t survive.’

She urged dog owners to be especially cautious during wet weather and said she and her partner are pressing the city to take action.

‘The city needs to pay closer attention to what’s happening beneath our sidewalks, especially in wet conditions,’ she wrote.

Despite the trauma, Mitchell said she has already returned to running.

‘The simple, wholesome act of running with my dog – something that is such an outlet for me – could have been fatal,’ she wrote.

‘I can let this scare me, or I can let it inspire me to take action so no one else experiences this.’

Fire officials believe a live electrical current from a nearby light pole traveled through the wet sidewalk, turning the concrete into a conduit.

Mitchell said she did not immediately feel the shock because she was wearing rubber-soled running shoes.

‘Denim’s paws were directly on the cement,’ she explained.

Denim is being closely monitored and is mostly just sleepy, says Mitchell

Mitchell says she is already back out running again and pounding the streets of Pittsburgh

City officials later confirmed the light pole involved is owned by the City of Pittsburgh and appeared to be missing a base component seen on surrounding poles – a detail that is now under investigation. Crews quickly took the pole offline.

‘In the last couple of hours, we’ve begun an immediate investigation to understand what happened,’ said Dan Gilman, chief of staff to Mayor of Pittsburgh, Corey O’Connor.

‘The pole has been and was several days ago immediately taken offline, so it is no longer a live pole. There’s no threat to the public,’ Gilman said. 

The accident mirrors one that occurred almost two years ago to the day when another dog was electrocuted and killed after stepping on a metal plate along the Murray Avenue Bridge in Squirrel Hill.

Bob Robinson-Dassel was walking his dog Nikki in January 2024 when she suddenly collapsed and died after contacting a low-voltage electrical closure embedded in the sidewalk.

‘It’s sad to see that another person has had to experience this same type of thing that I did,’ Robinson-Dassel said after learning of Mitchell’s ordeal. 

‘I really, really hope she and her dog recover physically and that she recovers emotionally from it because it’s not something that makes you forget quickly.’

Mitchell decided to share story so that the public would be made aware of what had happened 

Denim is now being closely monitored after the shock, with vets watching for complications

A third-party consultant later found that Nikki’s death was caused by a fault in an electrical conductor. 

At the time, the city pledged sweeping inspections of its streetlight system to prevent another tragedy, but according to Gilman, that plan was never fully carried out.

‘That never occurred,’ Gilman said. ‘So we gave a directive today to begin immediately implementing the entire plan that was issued previously, including an immediate survey of all streetlights, poles, mastheads, et cetera.’

Gilman acknowledged that while some targeted repairs were made after the earlier dog’s death, a comprehensive citywide analysis never happened.

‘It’s enough priority that we immediately authorized the work to start today,’ Gilman said. ‘When you’re talking about public safety issues, there’s no time to wait.’

Crews from Allegheny City Electric, the company contracted to maintain Pittsburgh’s light poles, were seen opening and inspecting the pole involved in Tuesday’s incident later in the week.