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I was struck by lightening at Ft. Knox while training. We were moving to low ground and it struck a tree above us. We all woke up dazed on the ground and two ended up in the hospital for a few days. I had migraines for about two weeks and that was it. Luckily it wasn't a direct hit.
In a previous life, I repaired commercial kitchen equipment. I was getting ready to work on a 480VAC dish machine (actually the hot water booster attached to the machine). I had just grabbed a line when someone turned the breaker back on. . . .my fault for not following lock-out/tag-out" procedures.
Scared the crap out of me. It was enough that it knocked me off the power. 1-2 minutes later I would have been pinned under the machine laying on my back. It think it could have been ugly
I've leaned on 120VAC and touched 48VDC with my tongue (yeah not one of my better moves). The 0.5mA thing is, as others are pointing out, a worst case.
A friend of mine who was a Navy electrician told a story about some fellow who stopped his heart with a multimeter by cutting his thumbs and then grabbing the test leads with the open wounds. Bypassed all the nice resistance the skin provides.
Maybe the Mythbusters will test that one? I'm sure not signing up for it.
48 V DC? That's for pussies. 120V AC? Been whacked by both 60 Hz and 400 Hz varieties numerous times. 480V AC? Kids' stuff.
September, 1981: I was working on a radio beacon (from which all safety interlocks had been removed long before I got there). They were dual-transmitter facilities and procedure was to put the good one on the air so the airplanes could still use the site. I stuck my hand into the wrong (read: LIVE) transmitter and touched the cathode of one of the high-voltage rectifier tubes.
1300V DC.
The jolt knocked me against the back wall of the radio shack. My arm was numb all the way up to my shoulder for a couple minutes. The skin on my finger was blasted open to where I could see the bone. Never hurt, never bled because the blood vessels and nerves were all cauterized.
I spent a few hours in the ER of the Aspen hospital where I was reminded that being a one-handed electrician probably saved my life. They cleaned up the wound, bandaged me up, put me on the heart monitor for a while and threw me out.
The voices in MY head are still arguing but it didn't seem to affect me much otherwise otherwise otherwise otherwise otherwise.
I have been bit by 75000 and 100000 V on a couple of occasions in my 30 year career working on X-ray machines. Yes it does leave a mark. Yes it does hurt. It has been almost 20 years since I made that mistake.
One of the rules working on HV is always have your left hand in your pocket. If you get bit then the most likely path is up your arm and down your side. Having HV travel from arm to arm greatly increases the risk of it stopping or sending your heart into a rhythm that will kill ya.[Coffee]
Lucky one CMS- I worked for the Forest Service right out of high school down by Rampart Range and we had T-storms come through daily. Nobody on our crew ever got hit but a crew out of Bailey had a member get hit. Watched lightning explode a tree about 50 yards away. Spooky, we had to put all of our saws and tools on the ridge or high point and we had to find the lowest spot practical and "Gook Squat" with our arms extended down towards the ground, theoretically if you got hit the bolt would travel down your arms to the ground.
Glad we never had to find out.
I have had the lightening hit so close that you can feel the current in the air. If you are ever anyplace in an electrical storm and feel "the hair on your neck stand up" hit the deck, it is actually "leaders" traveling towards the opposing current. Lightning strikes follow-think of how many pics you have seen of some clown standing on top of a mountain with their hair on end only to read that seconds later they were hit by lightening.
From what I understand 120V is more hazardous to your health than 220-440.
Quote:
Originally Posted by BPTactical
Haha good old FS protcol there was many a time did tree shrapnel land on the ugly green truck when i worked for them. the kevlar chaps saved me is what they say when the tree i was cutting got hit I had my knee up against it and it knocked me out for 10 minutes or so.
Lightning here.
1986, Old Elitches on 38th and Tennyson. Lightning hit one of the large cotton wood trees, the lightning splintered and hit several other items in the park. I happened to be the lucky one Operating the Spider ride which was on top of the bumper cars. All mechanical metal controls I was holding on to when the lightning hit Spider and thus kicked me off the controls. Happened all in slow motion, can remember the bolt just bouncing down that metal and hitting me! People on the ride screaming, I'm laying on the ground watching them go round and round. I was a mess for a day or two afterwards.
Funny as heck afterwards, but damn I'm like a Vietnam Vet hitting the deck if any lightning hits close by now. (Not making fun of anyone that has served, but I know a little of how they feel)
I stuck my tongue to a battery once.
[Beer]Quote:
Originally Posted by Bailey Guns
Double A or D-Cell?