A man has been taken to hospital after he got an electric shock when he touched overhead power lines.

Taupo's Greenlea Rescue Helicopter was called to a rural address outside Benneydale on Monday afternoon.

A man in his 50s had been working on the roof of a shed when he was believed to have touched the overhead lines.

He had a significant gash to his head and what appeared to be a small exit wound from the electricity on the bottom of his foot.

The man had no memory of the incident or the time period leading up to it.

He was initially knocked unconscious and was found by colleagues who alerted the emergency services.

The man, who was lucid and coherent but in considerable pain, was transported to Waikato Hospital.

For more articles from this region, go to ROTORUA DAILY POST