The East Village woman who died while walking her dogs on a slush-covered street near her home Friday night was electrocuted, the New York City medical examiner's office said yesterday.

Witnesses said Jodie S. Lane, 30, a doctoral student in clinical psychology at Columbia University Teachers College, was walking her two dogs in front of Veniero's pastry shop on East 11th Street shortly before 6:30 p.m. Friday when her dogs started acting strangely, barking and fighting each other. A passer-by, Ming Chan, said Ms. Lane touched the dogs, which had stepped on an electrified metal plate covering a Consolidated Edison utility box in the street. The dogs suffered burns.

Chris Olert, a spokesman for Con Ed, said the incident was still under investigation. Such accidents are tragic and extremely rare, he said, but the boxes are common. There are 254,000 manholes and utility boxes in the five boroughs and Westchester County, Con Ed's service area, according to the utility's Web site. Mr. Olert said he could not provide the exact number of utility boxes, where power lines connect to homes or businesses. It also was not immediately clear how many utility boxes are in well-traveled residential and business areas.

Unlike systems in smaller cities, the energy distribution system in New York and Westchester County is about three-quarters underground to prevent wind, snow and other weather conditions from snapping or weakening power lines.