Basic rules and safety requirements during a thunderstorm

A lightning strike is a powerful electrical discharge that possesses a high voltage of several million volts, a current of hundreds of thousands of amperes, and a very high temperature, up to 25 thousand degrees.

An instantaneous lightning strike can cause paralysis, deep loss of consciousness, and cardiac arrest. When struck by lightning, the victim may exhibit specific burns in the form of reddish streaks and blistering burns. A direct lightning strike to a person often results in immediate death due to cardiac arrest, severe damage to internal organs, and destruction of tissues and bones, as lightning in this case acts upon a person similarly to a hammer blow.

To avoid becoming a victim of this dangerous natural phenomenon, it is necessary to adhere to specific rules of conduct during a thunderstorm.

Lightning most often strikes in open areas or on

a solitary tree, less often indoors and even less often in a forest, therefore when a thunderstorm front approaches, you should stop in advance and find a safe place.

In an apartment, house, building: If you are at home during a thunderstorm, do not go near electrical wiring or antennas, close windows, turn off the TV, radio, and other electrical appliances, and do not touch metal objects. In a private house (dacha), a stove being heated poses a particular danger during a thunderstorm, as the smoke coming from the chimney is highly conductive and can attract an electrical discharge. For the same reason, you should extinguish campfires during a thunderstorm. In the house, eliminate drafts, tightly close windows, chimneys, disconnect electrical appliances from power sources, unplug the outdoor antenna, do not stay near windows, stoves, fireplaces, massive metal objects, on the roof, or in the attic.

In nature: When relaxing outdoors, before the rain starts, it is advisable to securely fasten your tent and all metal objects: dishes, shovels, saws, hammers, grills) should be placed 15-20 meters away from people. Lie down in the tent and wait out the thunderstorm inside. If there is no tent, then insulate yourself from the ground. Place polyethylene, branches, or a stone under you. Sit down and huddle, lowering your head to your knees, bring your feet together, cover yourself with polyethylene, as wet body and clothing increase the risk of lightning strike.

In the forest: In the forest, take shelter among low trees with dense crowns. Most often, lightning strikes oaks, poplars, elms, less often spruce and pine, very rarely birch and maple. It is dangerous to be in clearings, in places where water flows during a thunderstorm. Try to meet the thunderstorm in a clearing, do not seek shelter under the crowns of tall or solitary trees, do not lean against their trunks, as a direct lightning strike to a tree can shatter it into splinters and injure nearby people. Do not position yourself near a campfire: a column of hot air is a good conductor of electricity. Do not climb tall trees. In the forest, the safest place would be a lowland with a massif of low trees. Do not stay in a clearing, especially near a solitary tree.

In the open: In an open area, in a steppe, take shelter from a thunderstorm in dry pits, ditches, ravines. But if they start to fill with water, it is better to leave them. At the same time, it should be remembered that sandy and stony soil is safer than clay. Make sure that you are not the highest point in the vicinity, as lightning most often strikes it. Do not position yourself on elevations, near metal fences, power line poles and under wires, do not walk barefoot, do not hide in haystacks or straw, in uninhabited solitary barracks or sheds, do not raise conductive objects above your head: shovels, hoes, scythes. Stop sports activities.

games and movement, take cover, do not stay in a dense group in a potentially dangerous place.

Near water: during a thunderstorm, do not swim, do not stay in the immediate vicinity of a body of water, do not go boating, do not fish.

If you are on a body of water and see a thunderstorm approaching, leave the water area immediately and move away from the shore. In no case should you try to hide in the coastal bushes. If you need to cross an open space in search of shelter, do not run, walk at a calm pace. And turn off your mobile phone.

In transport: If a thunderstorm catches you in a car, do not leave it, close the windows and lower the radio antenna. Stop moving and wait out the bad weather on the roadside or in a parking lot, away from tall trees, do not stand in a high place or in an open field, wait out the thunderstorm in the car cabin, do not refuel the car during bad weather, do not stay between cars or in the back of a car, do not sit on metal objects, do not hide under the car, do not hold metal objects in your hands.

However, bicycles and motorcycles can be potentially dangerous at this time. They should be laid on the ground and moved at least 30 meters away.

Outdoors: If you are outdoors, remember: do not run or fidget in a thunderstorm area, remove all metal jewelry (necklaces, rings, earrings), do not approach power lines or tall trees, do not stand near metal fences, steel pipes, rails, or other electrical conductors. Do not approach agricultural machinery and small vehicles such as motorcycles and bicycles.