STATEN ISLAND — The mechanic electrocuted at a Midtown high-rise spent his entire career repairing elevators before dying in a "freak tragedy" Wednesday, his stunned family said.
Ed Bradley, 44, was shocked to death when his arm touched a wire inside a vault transformer while he was doing routine maintenance at 1290 Sixth Ave. about 9:30 p.m. Wednesday, authorities said.
The father of three grew up on Staten Island and started working as an elevator mechanic when he was 18, right after graduating from Tottenville High School, his brothers said from Bradley's Pleasant Plains home Thursday.
"It's just really a tragedy," said his brother, Tim Bradley, who also has worked as an elevator mechanic. "He was one of the best."
Kevin Bradley, another brother who also has a background in mechanics, said Ed was an experienced repairman and he can't explain what might have happened.
"He was a good mechanic," Kevin Bradley said. "It’s just a freak tragedy."
Ed Bradley, who had two sons and a daughter, was married for about 15 years and was a devoted family man, his brothers said.
He had planned to attend an awards dinner for his son’s basketball team Wednesday night after leaving his job, and relatives became worried when they didn’t hear from him.
"He was a great father, a great husband," Kevin Bradley said. "A stand-up guy."
The Sixth Avenue building where Ed Bradley was working at the time has a history of violations for its elevators, including one in 2010 for exposed wiring inside an electrical closet.
The elevator in question — one of 45 in the building — was shut down by the Department of Buildings following Wednesday's incident.
The building does not currently have any open violations regarding its elevators, according to the DOB.
