How a garden tap electrocuted girl, 11, leaving her fighting for life

A young girl who is fighting for her life after touching a garden tap outside her Perth home is believed to have been electrocuted due to a fault in the home's earthing system.

Denishar Woods, 11, is in a critical condition at Princess Margaret Hospital after touching the outdoor tap at her family’s Beldon property on Saturday night.

EnergySafety director of electricity compliance Mike Bunko said the fault was likely an upstream “open circuit neutral", which could be caused by corrosion, a loose connection and in some cases, poor workmanship.

Mr Bunko believes Denishar had up to 230 volts pass through her body, declaring "anything over 50 volts" as dangerous.

Denishar’s distraught mother Lacey Harrison said her daughter fell to the ground screaming when she tried to turn off the tap.

"She's only little, she should be going to school tomorrow, not sitting in a hospital bed with tubes coming out of her," an emotional Ms Harrison told reporters.

The shock was so big, Denishar's heart had stopped and the current began warming up her organs. Her mother rushed to help but was also shocked.

A neighbour heard Ms Harrison's cries for help rushed to the home to find the pair covered in water. The neighbour was also injured from the shock before calling paramedics who quickly arrived.

"Me and my daughter were laying there screaming for them to stop this energy going through us," she said.

"And I felt my body going away and I'm like: 'I'm a mother of seven kids, I can't go'."

WA housing minister Peter Tinley said the Department of Housing was looking into the incident and cooperating with Energy Safety, with an an investigation underway.

Ms Harrison revealed she has complained to the housing authority numerous times over a burning electrical smell at the property.

"I'm angry, frustrated, hurt. I want answers," Ms Harrison said.

"I want someone to pay for what my sister is going through right now," sister Jeanette Parker said.

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Mr Tinley vowed to identify the source of the problem.

“We will get to the bottom of this,” he said.

“We just hope that she pulls through. This is a tragedy that nobody should have to endure.”

Denishar remains in a coma at Princess Margaret Hospital and will be assessed by a brain specialist on Thursday.