Hai everyone !
I changed the decision and selected
this topic in view of the need !
“When thunder roars, go indoors”
-is a good dictum !
A person struck by lightning
needs medical care immediately to save life. Cardiac arrest and irregularities,
burns, and nerve damage are common in cases of attack.With immediate treatment
including CPR ( if necessary ),most victims survive.
Victims are not electrified. IT IS
SAFE TO HELP THEM.
A house is the safest place during
a storm.An inside room is generally safe.Be away from windows, electrical
appliances, wires,TV cables, metal doors, plumbing, metal frames ,taps, showers
etc.Never take shelter under a tree.
Avoid areas where you are the
tallest object in the area.
Ex.An umbrella increases risk if it
makes you the tallest object in the area.
Avoid water bodies such as lakes,
beaches, swimming pools etc.Not to ride, motor cycles, bicycles etc during a
thunder storm.
Taking shelter inside a car with
metal body is safe but you should not be in contact with the body of car
inside.(cars with plastic or fiber glass shells offer no lightning
protection at all).
If one is outside in a
thunderstorm, one can take shelter in a hard topped vehicle or a low area such
as a tunnel or a cave.But be away from fences and other conducting
objects such as telephone poles, power lines and pipelines.
When in an open field with no
nearby shelter, if the the hair begins to stand on end, it is an indication
that lightning is about to strike. Then drop down into a crouch with hands on
knees and balance on the balls of feet.The idea is to make minimum contact with
the ground.Never lie down flat or place the hands on the ground.
Stay inside for 30 minutes after
you last see lightning or hear thunder.
You can see my next post at 10 pm
tomorrow !
Over to you now !
✍️
My intention is to confine the
length of the blogs to 250- 300 words so that even a slow reader does not take
more than 5 minutes.So I got to do lot of editing to delete so many points in a
scientific topic like this without disturbing the essentials for even a general
reader.Since many among the reader fraternity have an appetite for interesting
details/explanation,I am covering some thing more under the heading
‘Annexure’.Here after I would like to follow this procedure whenever there is
such a need.
ANNEXURE
From times immemorial man has
always been fascinated by the glittering stars in the sky, the reddish tinge of
the fire ball ( Sun) , the soothing sensation by the light from the silvery
moon.Perhaps fewer forces of nature have created as much of fear, fascination
and reverence as lightning and thunder! Thunder is the sound caused by
lightning.
We see lightning first and hear
thunder next.Because light travels (faster)in vacuum at ~3 lakh km/sec and
sound travels at 0.3 km/sec.
If you can hear thunder, you are
within 16 km from the storm and may be struck by lightning.Seek shelter to
avoid vulnerability.
Lightning is a huge discharge of
electricity.It is a result of spark generated between opposite charges in a
cloud or between clouds or between a cloud and the ground.It is followed by a
stunning flash of light and a loud thunder.The spark can reach 8 km in
length.Temperature of air is raised by about 28,000 degree Celsius. This large
heat sets the air around to expand and vibrate producing sound of thunder. In
other words, the rapid expansion of heated air causes the thunder.Lightning can
contain high electrical voltages of about 100 million volts [ to impress upon
you, the voltage we are supplied for use in houses is 220V and that in
industries is 440V.].
Since water is a good conductor of
electricity, avoid water bodies such as lakes, beaches, swimming pools etc.
Not to lie down on the ground
-Lightning generates potentially deadly electrical currents along the ground in
all directions. So, by lying down, you are providing more potential points on
your body to hit.
Avoid contact with electrical
equipment or cords. If you plan to unplug any electronic equipment ( this is
preferable because the surge protectors may not ensure protection ),
do so, well before the storm arrives.
Thunderstorms are created by
intense heating of the Earth's surface. So they are most common in areas of the
globe where the weather is hot and humid. Landmasses,
therefore, experience more storms than the oceans and
thunderstorms are also more frequent in tropical areas than the higher
altitudes.
Some
interesting records :
A lightning flash that developed
continuously over northern Argentina on March 4, 2019 lasted for as long as
16.73 seconds. ( record in duration of time )
A flash stretched for more than 700
kilometres was seen across southern Brazil on October 31 last year. (record in
length of the stroke )
International
Lightning Safety Day is on June 28.
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