Using an iPod or phone in a storm ‘could kill’
Holding an iPod or carrying a mobile phone during a thunderstorm could kill, doctors warned last night.
MP3 players and handsets act as electrical conductors if a user is hit by lightning. The power surges into the body and can cause potentially fatal internal injuries.
Human skin usually resists lightning and spreads the electrical current across the surface of the body, causing a ‘flashover’ which has a low death rate. But conductive metal objects disrupt flashover and can cause serious burns or worse, three medical experts told the British Medical Journal. They cited the case of a girl of 15 who was hit by lightning in a
The power surge triggered a heart attack and she was found lying on her back. One arm was stuck rigidly upwards and her burnt-out phone was clutched in her hand.
The teenager was resuscitated but her injuries left her in a wheelchair. She has lost most of her hearing in the ear she used to listen to her mobile.
Doctors also referred to three similar cases, in
Swinda Esprit, an ear nose and throat specialist at
Weather expert Paul Taylor, of the Met Office, said, “It is well-known that wearing or carrying metallic objects increases the likelihood of injury. It adds to the intensity of skin damage.”
However, phone makers played down the risks last night. A Nokia spokesman said: “It is never a good idea in a storm to hold any metal items.”
Extracted from the Metro Friday June 23,2006 www.metro.co.uk
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