Sounds like the heating element should not be turned on when there's no water in the tank or it'll get burned out sooner than it might have otherwise. And then it describes what the damage looks like. How you get inside the tank to see that, I don't know.

Here's the user guide and manual for your unit, from the whirlpool website. I went to whirlpool and searched their products:

http://www.whirlpoolwaterheaters.com...=MHE2F40RS035V

Should answer more questions for you.