What are the effects of lightning on humans?

What are the effects of lightning on humans?

With a power of 300 kilovolts, lightning can heat the air up to 50,000 degrees Fahrenheit. This combination of power and heat can cause serious damage to the human body. Being struck by lightning may lead to burns, rupturing of the eardrum, eye damage, cardiac arrest, and respiratory arrest.

What happens when lightning strikes you?

Of every 10 people struck, nine will survive. But they could suffer a variety of short- and long-term effects: cardiac arrest, confusion, seizures, dizziness, muscle aches, deafness, headaches, memory deficits, distractibility, personality changes and chronic pain, among others.

Can lightning kill you?

Any way of being struck by lightning can potentially kill or injure someone, resulting in cardiac arrest or damage to the neurological system, but the way someone is struck may also impact the kind of injuries that individual might suffer. About 10% of people struck by lightning are killed.

What causes a person to get struck by lightning?

Whether inside or outside, anyone in contact with anything connected to metal wires, plumbing, or metal surfaces that extend outside is at risk. This includes anything that plugs into an electrical outlet, water faucets and showers, corded phones, and windows and doors.

What happens to the body when lightning strikes?

The heat produced when lightning moves over the skin can produce burns, but the current moving through the body is of greatest concern. While the ability to survive any lightning strike is related to immediate medical attention, the amount of current moving through the body is also a factor.

What are the different ways lightning strikes people?

Lightning Science: Five Ways Lightning Strikes People. 1 Direct Strike. A person struck directly by lightning becomes a part of the main lightning discharge channel. Most often, direct strikes occur to 2 Side Flash. 3 Ground Current. 4 Conduction. 5 Streamers.

When to seek medical attention for a lightning strike?

Any type of lightning strike should be taken seriously and medical attention should be sought if a person is thought to have been struck by lightning. Direct Strike: Of the five ways in which lightning can strike individuals, a direct strike is the least common. In a direct strike, the lightning current moves directly through the body.

Is it safe to be inside during a lightning strike?

Lightning can travel through any metal wires or bars in concrete walls or flooring. Although you should move into a non-concrete structure if possible, being indoors does not automatically protect you from lightning. In fact, about one-third of lightning-strike injuries occur indoors.