How to protect against lightning strikes?

What should you do when there is lightning?

■Song Haiyan, deputy director of the Beijing Lightning Protection Device Safety Testing Center

Beijing has been experiencing constant autumn rain and frequent lightning strikes in the past few days. To cause trouble, during a thunderstorm on the evening of the 22nd, a high-voltage line in Nanyuan Township, Fengtai was struck by lightning. At about 8:30 a.m. on the 24th, with a thunderous lightning strike, 15 high-voltage lines in the east and northwest of Shunyi District were struck by lightning. The electric shock cut off the 10-kilovolt power supply, causing power outages in dozens of administrative villages in seven towns in Shunyi District. This was the largest power outage due to a lightning strike in the city's history, but fortunately no casualties were caused.

Song Haiyan, deputy director of the Beijing Lightning Protection Device Safety Testing Center, said in an interview with reporters that lightning has been listed by the United Nations as one of the top ten natural disasters in the world. Every year, our country causes countless losses due to lightning strikes. Especially since the 1980s, with the widespread application of electronic information systems in residents' production, life and work, the losses caused by lightning disasters have become more and more serious.

Song Haiyan introduced to reporters that thunder and lightning is a meteorological phenomenon of sound, light and electricity that occurs in the atmosphere. It is mainly reflected within and between thunderclouds, or between thunderclouds and the earth. The discharge phenomenon occurs during the period. About 8 million lightning strikes occur around the world every day, and on average about 2,000 areas experience thunderstorms every minute. Thunderstorm activity in our country is mainly concentrated from June to August every year. According to meteorological observation data in Beijing, the earliest thunderstorm in Beijing occurs in mid-April every year, and it can be as late as late October.

According to incomplete statistics, as of the end of August, there have been 35 lightning disasters in Beijing this year. Through on-site investigation of lightning disasters, experts found that the main victims of lightning strikes are computers and monitoring systems in units, as well as household appliances such as televisions and computers in residential buildings.

Tips for household lightning protection insurance

1. During thunderstorms, doors and windows should be closed to prevent the intrusion of side strikes and ball mines.

2. During thunderstorms, it is best to cut off the power of indoor household appliances and unplug the phone.

3. During thunder and lightning weather, residents are advised not to come into contact with gas pipes, water pipes and various live devices at home.

4. It is not advisable to use the shower head when there is thunder and lightning, because the huge lightning will hit the showerer along the water flow.

Top Ten Methods for Outdoor Lightning Protection

Lightning usually hits the spire of the tallest object outdoors, so isolated tall trees or buildings are often the most vulnerable to lightning strikes. When there is a thunderstorm, people The following rules should be followed when outdoors to ensure safety.

1. Do not stay on the platforms of high-rise buildings during thunderstorms, and do not enter isolated sheds, guard booths, etc. in open areas outdoors.

2. Stay away from exposed water pipes, gas pipes and other metal objects and electrical equipment in buildings.

3. It is not advisable to avoid thunderstorms under big trees. If you have to, you must keep a distance of 3 meters from the trunk of the tree, squat down and keep your legs close.

4. If there is a feeling of ants crawling around your head, neck, and hands, and your hair stands up during thunder and lightning, it means that a lightning strike will occur. You should lie down on the ground quickly to reduce the risk of being struck by lightning. And take away the metal jewelry, hairpins, necklaces, etc. you are wearing.

5. If you encounter a thunderstorm outdoors and you have no time to leave the tall object, you should immediately find some dry insulation and place it on the ground, and sit on it with your feet together. Do not put your feet on the insulation. outside the ground because water conducts electricity.

6. When avoiding thunderstorms outdoors, be careful not to support the ground with your hands. At the same time, hold your knees with your hands, keep your chest close to your knees, and lower your head as much as possible, because the head is most vulnerable to lightning strikes than other parts of the body. .

7. When you see lightning and hear thunder within a few seconds outdoors, it means you are in a dangerous environment near a thunderstorm. At this time, you should stop walking, put your feet together and squat down immediately, and do not interact with others. Pull together, it is best to use plastic rain gear, raincoat, etc.

8. During a thunderstorm, it is not advisable to hold an umbrella in the wilderness, or hold aloft a badminton racket, golf club, hoe, etc.; it is not advisable to engage in outdoor ball sports. Playing golf, football and other sports during a thunderstorm is inappropriate. It is very dangerous; it is not suitable to stay on or near the water; it is not suitable to wash clothes, fish, swim or play by the river.

9. During thunderstorms, it is not advisable to drive a motorcycle quickly, ride a bicycle quickly, or run wildly in the rain, because the greater the stride of the body, the greater the voltage, and the easier it is to injure someone.

10. If you see a high-voltage line broken by lightning when you are outdoors, you should be more vigilant at this time, because there is a step voltage near the breakpoint of the high-voltage line. People nearby must not run at this time, but should Put your feet together and jump away from the scene.

What to do if someone is struck by lightning

1. After being struck by lightning, the human body often appears in a state of "suspended death". At this time, emergency measures should be taken for rescue. The first is to perform mouth-to-mouth artificial respiration. The earlier the artificial respiration is performed after a lightning strike, the better the recovery of the injured person's body, because the human brain's lack of oxygen for more than ten minutes will be fatal.

2. Secondly, perform heart massage on the injured person and quickly notify the hospital for rescue treatment.

3. If the injured person's clothes catch fire after being struck by lightning, the injured person should be asked to lie down immediately to prevent the flames from burning the face.

And pour water on the injured, or wrap the injured with thick coats, blankets, etc. to extinguish the flames.

Security door turned into conductive door

Case 1

At 5:30 pm on June 21, 1992, a thunderstorm suddenly occurred in Beijing, and I was playing on the street Tingting, a 10-year-old girl, was soaked in the rain and ran home in a hurry. When she pushed open the iron door of her house, she fainted and fell to the ground. Her family gave her artificial respiration in time, and then the ambulance took her to the hospital. After the doctors' full rescue efforts, Tingting finally regained consciousness 6 hours later and became conscious.

Expert comments:

This is a very typical example of people being struck by induced lightning, which is of great reference value for lightning protection in the daily lives of urban residents in my country today. Because it is now popular for many residents to install security doors in their homes. When lightning strikes, iron or steel security doors sometimes become charged due to electrostatic induction. Once there is a ground mine nearby, those who touch the door will be struck by lightning due to contact voltage like Tingting in the case. .

Case 2

Since records began, a lightning strike has killed at most 21 people. This tragedy occurred on December 23, 1975. At that time, 21 farmers who were conducting field activities on the outskirts of Umtali, Zimbabwe, on the southern African plateau, crowded into a hut at the same time to avoid a thunderstorm. Lightning struck the hut, causing a fire. The hut was reduced to ashes in an instant, killing all 21 people in the flames.

Expert comments:

In this lightning strike accident, there were two main reasons why 21 people were killed simultaneously. Lightning protection common sense, choosing the wrong shelter location. Secondly, victims do not realize that lightning strikes often cause fires and other disasters. The reason why none of the 21 people survived was mainly because thatch is flammable, and all the victims who lost consciousness after the lightning strike were buried in the flames. ("Beijing Evening News")

How to avoid lightning strikes

1. In order to "nip induction lightning in the bud", the average household installs at least three lightning arresters.

2. Do not get close to tall telephone poles, tall towers, big trees, chimneys and other objects, and keep at least two meters away.

3. When there is thunder, try not to turn on the faucet, let alone take a bath. When swimming, you should go ashore quickly.

4. Stay away from doors and windows, and try not to use or use phones, mobile phones or radios as little as possible.

5. If you encounter a sudden severe thunderstorm outdoors, do not crowd together with many people. Do not use household appliances during thunderstorms and unplug them.