What should I do if I meet a thunderstorm at the top of an empty mountain?

In case of thunderstorm, be sure to stay away from the top of the mountain or other commanding heights; If you are in the forest, pay attention to choose places surrounded by trees and with open spaces in the middle for lightning protection; It is generally safer to enter the cave, but don't lean against it.

In the thunderstorm weather in the wilderness, it is safer to wear a raincoat than an umbrella. On rainy days, in the wild, it is human nature to open an umbrella to keep out the rain. But remember, if you hear thunder immediately after seeing lightning, it means that you are in a thunderstorm environment. Stop walking, put down your umbrella, and get down immediately with your feet together. Even if you don't have an umbrella, you shouldn't run around. When the thunder fades away, you can quickly find a safe place to shelter from the rain. It is safer to prepare a raincoat when traveling.

Don't hide under the tree from the rain. Traveling outside, there is a thunderstorm, and there is a big tree next to it. Most people will naturally run under the tree to hide from the rain. As we all know, although hiding from the rain, it has caused lightning disasters, and accidents of being hit by lightning under trees often occur. If you really have to stay under the big tree, you must keep a distance of more than 2 meters from the tree body and branches, try to squat down and put your feet together first. This can not only reduce the effective height of human body, but also prevent the harm of step voltage.

Lightning self-help

In fact, lightning is a huge electric spark. This is obvious when lightning rushes from the ground to the clouds or from the clouds to the ground, although it can also spread in or between clouds. The airflow that makes up a storm cloud can separate powerful electric energy from the cloud.

Positive current is concentrated in the lower part of the cloud, and negative current is concentrated in the upper part of the cloud or on the ground. Just like electromagnetism, positive and negative electricity attract each other. After continuous transmission, positive and negative currents collide, forming a huge electric spark, thus forming lightning.

Because the speed of light is about 6.5438+0 million times that of sound, there will be a certain time difference between lightning and accompanying thunder. The distance between you and the storm can be calculated by counting the seconds of the time difference between lightning and thunder, and then dividing by 5 meters. This number is the number of miles from the storm, which is:

Your distance from the storm (miles) = the time difference between lightning and thunder (seconds) /5 (meters).

Lightning strikes millions of volts, causing air to expand and explode, thus forming lightning. Thunder itself is harmless. The possibility of being struck by lightning in thunderstorm weather is very small, but the lightning phenomenon cannot be predicted completely and accurately, so be careful to prevent and reduce the danger.

Lightning always twists and turns along the path of least resistance. Its path in the air depends entirely on the electric field and charge distribution in the air, and it is usually only affected by the ground conditions when it is more than ten meters away from the ground to 100 meters. Generally speaking, the ground has good conductivity and there are prominent tall objects. , vulnerable to lightning. For example, the geological conditions of metal minerals with good conductivity are more vulnerable to lightning strikes than general geological conditions, and the chances of being struck by lightning in wet soil are more than in dry soil, sandy land and rocky land. The water surface is more vulnerable to lightning strikes than in dry land, and prominent buildings such as tall buildings and chimneys are more vulnerable to lightning strikes than in flat land, and mountainous areas are more vulnerable to lightning strikes than in valleys.

There is no doubt that it hurts to be directly hit by lightning, but sometimes, even if it is not directly hit by lightning, it will cause accidents because it is very close to the lightning strike point. This is because when the lightning current leaks into the ground, the voltage near the lightning strike point is much greater than the voltage far away from the lightning strike point because of the existence of grounding resistance. Therefore, if people stand with their feet apart, one foot is close to the lightning strike point and the other foot is far away from the lightning strike point, a certain potential difference will occur, which is often called "step voltage". Part of lightning current will also cause harm because of "step voltage" flowing through human body. The worse the surface conductivity, the greater the "step voltage".

Safety measures in thunderstorm weather

General principles: First, the position of the human body should be as low as possible to reduce the risk of being directly struck by lightning; Second, the contact parts between the human body and the ground, such as feet, should be as close as possible, and the smaller the contact with the ground, the better, so as to reduce the "step voltage".

When thunder and lightning strike, it is a harbinger of skin tingling or hair erect, so you should avoid it immediately.

If you are in tall objects such as trees and buildings, you should leave immediately. If it is too late to leave tall objects, find some dry insulation on the ground, sit on it, take a squat lightning protection posture, and pay attention to your feet together. Put your hands together. Never put them on the ground. Never lie down. At this time, although the height is reduced, the danger of "step voltage" is increased. Water can conduct electricity, so wet objects are not insulated.

Don't avoid the thunderstorm at the mouth of the cave, under the big stone or hanging rock, because these places will become spark gaps, and the arc generated when the current passes will hurt people. But the deep hole is safe, so you should try to go inside.

Stay away from iron bars and other metal objects. What is fatal is not direct electric shock. After lightning hits the conductor, it instantly releases electric energy, and the arc emitted to both sides reaches several meters. In addition, hot lightning makes the surrounding air expand rapidly, producing shock waves. The sound made by these shock waves is thunder. If you hear it nearby, powerful sound waves may impact the lungs, which can cause death in severe cases.

If you are in an open place during a thunderstorm, you should immediately squat on the ground, which can reduce the risk of being struck by lightning. Don't support the ground with your hands, which will expand the contact range between your body and the ground and increase the risk of being struck by lightning. Hold your knees with your hands, keep your chest close to your knees, and keep your head as low as possible, because your head is the most vulnerable to lightning.

Solitary trees and isolated grass sheds in open areas and hilltops should be avoided because they are vulnerable to lightning strikes. It is dangerous to take shelter from the rain at this time, especially standing under low branches that extend far to both sides. However, things are divided into two parts. If there is a dense forest in the wild and there is no other lightning protection place for the time being, then you can also use the dense forest to prevent lightning, because the probability of being struck by lightning is similar everywhere in the dense forest. At this time, as long as you don't stand on the edge of the forest, you'd better choose an open space in the forest, keep your feet together and keep a close distance from the surrounding trees.

In principle, during lightning, you should try to avoid tall objects without lightning protection equipment, such as towers, large cranes, haystacks, tents, etc. in open areas, and don't go to commanding heights such as hilltops and ridges. Do not go near any part of lightning protection equipment. Railways, long metal railings and other huge metal objects should also be avoided.

If you swim in rivers, lakes or swimming pools, you should go ashore and leave in case of thunderstorms. Because the water surface is easily hit by lightning, and if it is injured by lightning in the water, it will increase the risk of drowning. In addition, try not to stay on ships without lightning protection equipment, especially wooden sailboats with high masts.

If you are driving, you should stay in the car. The car shell is made of metal. Because of the shielding effect, even if lightning hits the car, it will not hurt people. Therefore, the carriage is an ideal place to avoid lightning. However, it is best not to ride horses, bicycles, motorcycles or tractors during lightning.

If you are at home, please unplug the outdoor antenna plug and power plug of the TV. Don't be close to the window, try to stay away from incoming wires such as electric lights, wires and telephone lines, and avoid steel columns, water pipes and heating pipes in buildings without lightning protection devices to prevent lightning current from entering the human body through them. In addition, if there are many people in the room, it is best to be a few meters apart. If you are outdoors, wearing shoes or boots with rubber soles can protect you, but it is not completely safe.

According to the old saying, when it thunders, you should close the doors and windows and leave the fireplace, but it doesn't really help much. Closing doors and windows is only suitable for dealing with spherical lightning, but this kind of lightning is extremely rare and there is still a lack of reliable information. Ordinary lightning doesn't shoot into the house through an open window.

Rescue after being struck by lightning

Being struck by lightning is not necessarily fatal. Many people survived the catastrophe, feeling only electric shock and minor burns. Others who are struck by lightning may cause fractures (muscle spasm caused by electric shock), severe burns and other injuries.

Lightning damage often happens, and it will be greatly threatened if it is not avoided or lightning protection measures are improper. It is reported that in Switzerland, about 10 people per million people are struck by lightning every year. In the United States, more people die from lightning accidents than from hurricanes every year; In Japan, a lightning accident occurred in 1968, resulting in the death of 1 1 children. Therefore, it is necessary for us to know the specific measures of lightning protection and the rescue methods after being struck by lightning.

Lightning hurts people mainly because the lightning current is strong. Its main harm to human body. Usually it's not a burn. If lightning hits the head and reaches the ground through the body, it will paralyze people's nerves and heart, which is likely to be fatal. When people are impacted by lightning current, their hearts either stop beating or the beating rate is extremely irregular, resulting in vibration. In both cases, blood circulation will be stopped and brain nerve will be damaged, and people will die within a few minutes. It is still possible to wake up after being rescued by lightning in time. Sometimes even if you can't feel the victim's breathing and pulse, it doesn't necessarily mean "death". If you can rescue in time (such as artificial respiration), you can often restore the heartbeat and breathing of the "dead". In addition, lightning strike may cause the injured person's clothes to catch fire, and may also melt the injured person's metal ornaments and watchbands.

If the injured person's clothes catch fire, let him lie down immediately so that the flame won't burn his face. Otherwise, the injured person may die from lack of oxygen or burns. You can also splash water on the injured, or wrap the injured with thick coats and blankets to put out the flames. The injured should not run because of panic, which will make the fire burn more and more brightly. They can roll on the ground to put out the fire, or they can lie down in a depression or pool with water to put out the fire. Cool the wound with cold water and then cover it with a dressing, for example, wash one side with a folded handkerchief and cover it with a clean cloth.

If the electrocuted person loses consciousness, keep him in a horizontal posture and keep him warm and comfortable. It is very necessary to carry out electric shock first aid and artificial respiration immediately.