Mom of Three Dies After Phone Electrocutes Her in Bathtub

A Dublin mother of three died in a horrifying accident after her charging cell phone slipped into the bathtub and electrocuted her — just moments after speaking to her husband on the phone.

46-year-old Ann-Marie O’Gorman was described in court as “fit and healthy” and a regular gym-goer, but her life was cut short on October 30, 2024, when what should have been a normal evening turned fatal.

Ann-Marie’s husband, Joe O’Gorman, testified that he had left their home that evening to drop their youngest daughter off at a school disco. On the way back, he spoke briefly to his wife over the phone. He suspected she was already in the bath.

When he returned, the father walked into the bathroom to update his wife about their daughter — and instead found Ann-Marie lying motionless on her side in the water.

“I thought she had fallen asleep,” Joe told the Dublin District Coroner’s Court. “But when I opened one of her eyelids, I knew something was terribly wrong.”

He spotted an iPhone charging cable trailing into the tub. Acting on instinct, he flung the device and cord into the sink, then pulled his wife from the water. As he tried CPR, he felt a faint shock himself.

“There were red marks on her hands and chest,” he said. “That’s when I realized she had been electrocuted.”

According to forensic testimony, the phone had been connected to an almost 10-foot charging cable. Investigators believe the device was only “barely in the water” when Ann-Marie tried to retrieve it.

Consultant forensic engineer Paul Collins explained that Ann-Marie may have made fatal contact with a metal shower attachment as she reached for the phone.

“Strange as it sounds, if she had not taken her hand out of the water, she might still be alive,” Collins said.

Paramedics arrived at 8:38 p.m., but despite desperate efforts, Ann-Marie could not be revived. Post-mortem results revealed electrocution burns on her chest, arm, thumb, and finger. Toxicology tests ruled out alcohol or drug involvement.

Joe O’Gorman is now calling for phone manufacturers and service providers to take responsibility by warning customers about the very real risk of electrocution.

“All you ever hear is that phones are waterproof up to six feet,” he told the court. “That gives people the idea you can safely have them near water. There should be clear warnings that this is dangerous. People need to know you can die from this.”

He added: “There’s nothing being done whatsoever by any provider to say this is a hazard. That has to change.”

The case highlights a little-discussed but deadly risk: the combination of electronics and water.

“Leave your phone on a dressing table,” Collins urged during testimony. “It doesn’t matter if it’s charging or not — it should never be near water.”

For Ann-Marie O’Gorman’s family, the warning comes too late. A vibrant mother of three lost her life in an instant, leaving behind a husband determined that her death won’t be in vain.