Storm: This is what happens in the body when you are struck by lightning

Created: 06/08/2022Updated: 06/08/2022 08:13

By: Anna Katharina Kusters

Thunderstorms are not uncommon in summer.

If you are out and about outside, you can protect yourself with a few tips.

Munich – Summer brings rain and heavy thunderstorms every year.

However, due to various factors such as climate change, these thunderstorms have been increasing for a few years.

Fortunately, people are rarely struck by lightning, and with a little prior knowledge of the electrical voltage in the sky, the risk can be reduced even further.

Because sometimes the storm front surprises even the most cautious walker and then the right protection is important.

Lightning strike: Never lay on the ground during a thunderstorm

Don't lie on the ground during a thunderstorm.

(Iconic image) © imagebroker/Imago

When lightning strikes the earth, it carries a huge voltage with it.

People only survive such an impact because the lightning does not usually travel through the entire body, but flows along the body's surface.

According to Westdeutscher Rundfunk (WDR), this alone can cause the voltage in the body to rise to up to 100,000 volts.

Lightning has a temperature of up to 30,000 degrees Celsius, leaving marks on the body when it strikes.

Often they show up in the form of burns.

A lightning strike to the body can also cause the following damage:

• Damage to the sense of hearing and balance (e.g. rupture of the eardrum)

• Nerve and muscle paralysis

• brain damage

• coma

• temporary and permanent paralysis

• heart damage

• kidney failure

• increased blood pressure

• memory disorders

• loss of sense of smell

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So getting struck in the body is something that people should avoid at all costs.

But the weather is not always predictable and a short walk can end in a violent thunderstorm front.

In moments like this, people need to know how best to protect themselves.

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Lightning Strike: Not to be the highest point

The safest place during a thunderstorm is and remains the car.

During the thunderstorm, the car acts as a kind of cage that immediately conducts any electricity into the ground without harming the people sitting inside.

If there is no car nearby during the walk, but there are overhead lines, these also offer safety.

People should look for the space below the overhead line.

High buildings and masts also absorb a lightning strike.

Trees, on the other hand, are not good shelter.

If lightning strikes there and the walker is standing under it, flying splinters can hit him or the lightning can spread from the tree to people.

Outdoors, walkers should place their feet close together and crouch down.

So they are no longer the highest point in the area.

Laying it on the ground, on the other hand, is a very bad idea, because if it did, lightning would go straight through your whole body if it struck.

This article only contains general information on the respective health topic and is therefore not intended for self-diagnosis, treatment or medication.

In no way does it replace a visit to the doctor.

Unfortunately, our editors are not allowed to answer individual questions about clinical pictures.