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Be
Prepared: Avoid Being Struck by Lightning
AUBURN, Feb. 21---This
week is Severe Weather Preparedness Week in Alabama. Throughout the
state, various media outlets are reminding the public that
springtime usually brings with it a number of severe thunderstorms,
dangerous lightning, flash floods and tornadoes. This week's a good
time to review safety tips concerning severe weather.
If you plan to be
outdoors a lot this spring, check the latest weather forecast and
keep an eye on the sky because thunderstorms with deadly lightning
can pop up suddenly and put you in danger, says Dr. Tony Cook,
Extension program specialist with the Alabama Cooperative Extension
System. Lightning can strike miles away from a parent cloud, so take
precautions if the thunderstorm is not directly overhead.
Lightning results from
the buildup and discharge of electrical energy between positively
and negatively charged areas. Rising and descending air within a
thunderstorm separates these charges. Water and ice also affect
charge distribution. Lightning can occur from cloud-to-cloud, within
a cloud, cloud-to-ground or cloud-to-air.
A cloud-to-ground strike
begins as in invisible channel of electrically charged air moving
from the cloud toward the ground. When one channel nears an object
on the ground, a powerful surge of electricity from the ground moves
upward to the clouds and produces the visible lightning strike.
When a thunderstorm
threatens, it's best to get inside a house, a large building or an
automobile. Don't use the telephone
except for emergencies.
Lightening causes an
average of 80 fatalities and 300 injuries each year. Most lightning
fatalities and injuries occur when people are caught outside in the
summer months during the afternoon and evening.
"If you are caught
outside, get off or away from open water, tractors and other metal
farm equipment, says Cook. "Stay away from small metal vehicles
such as motorcycles, bicycles and golf carts."
Golfers are hit by
lightning every year. They often make the mistake of waiting until
the last minute to leave the course. To be safe, get off the course
as quickly as possible, put down golf clubs and take off metal-cleated
golf shoes.
Here are few other
safety tips:
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Stay away from
wire fences, clotheslines, metal pipes and rails. If you are
in a group of people, spread out and keep several yards apart.
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In a forest, seek
shelter in a low area under a thick growth of small trees. In
open areas, go to a low place, such as a ravine or valley.
If you are caught in a
level field or prairie far from shelter and feel your hair stand on
end, lightning may be about to strike you, says Cook. "Drop to
your knees and bend forward, putting your hands on your knees. Do
not lie flat on the ground."
People struck by
lightning receive a severe electrical shock and may be burned, but
they carry no electrical charge and can be handled safely. Someone
who appears to have been killed
by lightning often can
be revived by prompt action.
Always treat the
apparently "dead" first. The American Red Cross says if a
victim is not breathing, immediately begin mouth-to-mouth
resuscitation, once every five seconds to adults
and once every three
seconds to infants and small children until medical help arrives.
If both pulse and
breathing are absent, cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) is
necessary. This procedure should be performed only by persons with
proper training.
Victims who appear only
stunned or otherwise unhurt may also need attention, Cook adds.
Check for burns, especially fingers and toes and next to buckles and
jewelry. Give first aid for shock. Don't let the victim walk around.
Stay with the victim until help arrives.
A Red Cross first aid
course provides excellent instruction on how to give aid to a person
who has been struck by lightning.
SOURCE: DR. TONY COOK (jacook@aces.edu),
Extension Program Specialist, Alabama Cooperative Extension System,
(334) 844-2233
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