Safety & Health for Electrical Trades (Student Manual)

Whenever you work with power tools or on electrical circuits there is
a risk of electrical hazards, especially electrical shock. Anyone can
be exposed to these hazards at home or at work. Workers are exposed to
more hazards because job sites can be cluttered with tools and materials,
fast-paced, and open to the weather. Risk is also higher at work because
many jobs involve electric power tools.

Electrical trades workers must pay special attention to electrical hazards
because they work on electrical circuits. Coming in contact with an electrical
voltage can cause current to flow through the body, resulting in electrical
shock and burns. Serious injury or even death may occur.
As a source of energy, electricity is used without much thought about
the hazards it can cause. Because electricity is a familiar part of our
lives, it often is not treated with enough caution. As a result, an average
of one worker is electrocuted on the job every day of every year! Electrocution
is the third leading cause of work-related deaths among 16- and 17-year-olds,
after motor vehicle deaths and workplace homicide. Electrocution is the
cause of 12% of all workplace deaths among young workers.¹

Note to the learner—This manual describes the hazards of electrical work and basic approaches to working safely. You will learn skills to help you recognize, evaluate, and control electrical hazards. This information will prepare you for addi-tional safety training such as hands-on exercises and more detailed reviews of regulations for electrical work. Your employer, co-workers, and community will depend on your expertise. Start your career off right by learning safe practices and developing good safety habits. Safety is a very important part of any job. Do it right from the start.

Electrical work can be deadly if not done safely.

This
manual will present many topics. There are four main types of electrical
injuries: electrocution (death due to electrical shock), electrical
shock, burns, and falls. The dangers of electricity, electrical
shock, and the resulting injuries will be discussed. The various electrical
hazards will be described. You will learn about the Safety Model,
an important tool for recognizing, evaluating, and controlling hazards.
Important definitions and notes are shown in the margins. Practices
that will help keep you safe and free of injury are emphasized. To give
you an idea of the hazards caused by electricity, case studies about
real-life deaths will be described.

An electrical shock is received when electrical current passes through
the body. Current will pass through the body in a variety of situations.
Whenever two wires are at different voltages, current will pass between
them if they are connected. Your body can connect the wires if you touch
both of them at the same time. Current will pass through your body.

In
most household wiring, the black wires and the red wires are at 120
volts. The white wires are at 0 volts because they are connected to
ground. The connection to ground is often through a conducting ground
rod driven into the earth. The connection can also be made through a
buried metal water pipe. If you come in contact with an energized
black wire—and you are also in contact with the neutral white wire—current
will pass through your body. You will receive an electrical shock.

current – the movement of electrical charge

voltage – a measure of electrical force

circuit – a complete path for the flow of current

You will receive a shock if you touch two wires at different voltages at the same time.

ground – a physical electrical connection to the earth

energized (live, “hot”) – similar terms meaning that a voltage is present that can cause a current, so there is a possibility of getting shocked

conductor – material in which an electrical current moves easily

neutral – at ground potential (0 volts) because of a connection to ground

You will receive a shock if you touch a live wire and are grounded at the same time.

When a circuit, electrical component, or equipment is energized, a potential shock hazard is present.

If
you are in contact with a live wire or any live component of an energized
electrical device—and also in contact with any grounded object—you will
receive a shock. Plumbing is often grounded. Metal electrical boxes
and conduit are grounded.

Your
risk of receiving a shock is greater if you stand in a puddle of water.
But you don’t even have to be standing in water to be at risk. Wet clothing,
high humidity, and perspiration also increase your chances of being
electrocuted. Of course, there is always a chance of electrocution,
even in dry conditions.

You
can even receive a shock when you are not in contact with an electrical
ground. Contact with both live wires of a 240-volt cable will deliver
a shock. (This type of shock can occur because one live wire may be
at +120 volts while the other is at -120 volts during an alternating
current cycle—a difference of 240 volts.). You can also receive
a shock from electrical components that are not grounded properly. Even
contact with another person who is receiving an electrical shock may
cause you to be shocked.

A 30-year-old male electrical technician was helping a company service representative test the voltage-regulating unit on a new rolling mill. While the electrical technician went to get the equipment service manual, the service representative opened the panel cover of the voltage regulator’s control cabinet in preparation to trace the low-voltage wiring in question (the wiring was not color-coded). The service representative climbed onto a nearby cabinet in order to view the wires. The technician returned and began working inside the control cabinet, near exposed energized electrical conductors. The technician tugged at the low-voltage wires while the service representative tried to identify them from above. Suddenly, the representative heard the victim making a gurgling sound and looked down to see the victim shaking as though he were being shocked. Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) was administered to the victim about 10 minutes later. He was pronounced dead almost 2 hours later as a result of his contact with an energized electrical conductor. To prevent an incident like this, employers should take the following steps: Establish proper rules and procedures on how to access electrical control cabinets without getting hurt. Make sure all employees know the importance of de-energizing (shutting off) electrical systems before performing repairs. Equip voltage-regulating equipment with color-coded wiring. Train workers in CPR.

A maintenance man rode 12 feet above the floor on a motorized lift to work on a 277-volt light fixture. He did not turn off the power supply to the lights. He removed the line fuse from the black wire, which he thought was the “hot” wire. But, because of a mistake in installation, it turned out that the white wire was the “hot” wire, not the black one. The black wire was neutral. He began to strip the white wire using a wire stripper in his right hand. Electricity passed from the “hot” white wire to the stripper, then into his hand and through his body, and then to ground through his left index finger. A co-worker heard a noise and saw the victim lying face-up on the lift. She immediately summoned another worker, who lowered the platform. CPR was performed, but the maintenance man could not be saved. He was pronounced dead at the scene. You can prevent injuries and deaths by remembering the following points: If you work on an electrical circuit, test to make sure that the circuit is de-energized (shut off)! Never attempt to handle any wires or conductors until you are absolutely positive that their electrical supply has been shut off. Be sure to lock out and tag out circuits so they cannot be re-energized. Always assume a conductor is dangerous.

You will receive an electrical shock if a part of your body completes

an electrical circuit by

• touching a live
  wire and an electrical ground, or
• touching a live
  wire and another wire at a different voltage.

Plan for It: Electric Shock First Aid

The amount of damage an electric current can cause is, well, shocking. Electricity running through the body can result in many disastrous injuries, including broken bones and cardiac arrest. Learn what steps you should take to keep everyone as safe as possible in the event of an electric shock.

What Is Electric Shock?

Electric shock occurs when a person comes into contact with an electric current. The current can stop at the skin, or it can enter the body in one place and exit it in another. Shocks can come from electrical cords, appliances, wall sockets, machinery at a job site, and lightning. The extent of injuries the affected person can experience varies greatly.

Possible Electric Shock Injuries

People can walk away from an electric shock with no injuries at all, they can have minor injuries from the incident, or they can suffer severe trauma. Burns are a common affliction for people experiencing an electric shock. There will typically be a more intense burn where the current entered the body and a smaller burn at the exit point. Broken bones can occur due to the muscles contracting from the sudden electric current running through the body. The shock can also cause people to go into cardiac arrest, at which point you should perform CPR (as long as they no longer have an electric current running through their body).

Minor Shocks

For the most part, any shock coming from a voltage below 500 volts won’t cause much harm, and scheduling an appointment with your primary care physician for treatment will suffice. However, there are still circumstances when immediate medical attention is crucial. If the affected person is more than 20 weeks pregnant, if it’s been over five years since their last tetanus booster, if the person becomes unconscious for any amount of time, or if there is any tingling, paralysis, change in vision, chest pain, hearing or speech problems, or shortness of breath, it’s critical they receive emergency medical care.

How to Perform First Aid for a Major Electric Shock (500 volts or higher)

• Call 911. They will send emergency medical care to the scene.
• Turn off the power immediately, if possible. If the shock comes from something you can’t power off, the 911 operator can contact the electric company to have them shut the power down. As long as electricity is still flowing, stay far away from the electrified area and do not touch the affected person.
• Don’t move the person once the electric current is gone. They could have sustained an injury from the shock and moving them could exacerbate it.
• Check for a pulse and signs of breathing. If they aren’t breathing, begin to perform CPR.
• Cover any visible burns with sterile gauze if you have some nearby.

Medical Therapy, Surgical Therapy, Operative Details and Follow-up

Author

Brian J Daley, MD, MBA, FACS, FCCP, CNSC Professor and Program Director, Department of Surgery, Chief, Division of Trauma and Critical Care, University of Tennessee Health Science Center College of Medicine

Brian J Daley, MD, MBA, FACS, FCCP, CNSC is a member of the following medical societies: American Association for the Surgery of Trauma, Eastern Association for the Surgery of Trauma, Southern Surgical Association, American College of Chest Physicians, American College of Surgeons, American Medical Association, Association for Academic Surgery, Association for Surgical Education, Shock Society, Society of Critical Care Medicine, Southeastern Surgical Congress, Tennessee Medical Association

Disclosure: Nothing to disclose.

Coauthor(s)

Juan J Gallegos, MD Resident Physician in General Surgery, University of Tennessee Memorial Hospital

Juan J Gallegos, MD is a member of the following medical societies: American Medical Association, Society of Thoracic Surgeons, Tennessee Medical Association, Texas Medical Association

Disclosure: Nothing to disclose.

Jose Fernando Aycinena Goicolea, MD Colorectal Surgeon, The Longstreet Clinic

Jose Fernando Aycinena Goicolea, MD is a member of the following medical societies: American College of Surgeons, Pennsylvania Medical Society

Disclosure: Nothing to disclose.

Ali Farouk Mallat, MD, MS, FACS Assistant Professor of Surgery, Akron General Medical Center, Hillcrest Hospital, Cleveland Clinic

Ali Farouk Mallat, MD, MS, FACS is a member of the following medical societies: American College of Surgeons, American Medical Association, Eastern Association for the Surgery of Trauma, International College of Surgeons US Section, National Arab American Medical Association, Society of American Gastrointestinal and Endoscopic Surgeons, Society of Critical Care Medicine, Surgical Infection Society

Disclosure: Nothing to disclose.

Specialty Editor Board

Francisco Talavera, PharmD, PhD Adjunct Assistant Professor, University of Nebraska Medical Center College of Pharmacy; Editor-in-Chief, Medscape Drug Reference

Disclosure: Received salary from Medscape for employment. for: Medscape.

Robert L Sheridan, MD Assistant Chief of Staff, Chief of Burn Surgery, Shriners Burns Hospital; Associate Professor of Surgery, Department of Surgery, Division of Trauma and Burns, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School

Robert L Sheridan, MD is a member of the following medical societies: American Academy of Pediatrics, American Association for the Surgery of Trauma, American Burn Association, American College of Surgeons

Disclosure: Nothing to disclose.

Chief Editor

John Geibel, MD, MSc, DSc, AGAF Vice Chair and Professor, Department of Surgery, Section of Gastrointestinal Medicine, Professor, Department of Cellular and Molecular Physiology, Yale University School of Medicine; Director of Surgical Research, Department of Surgery, Yale-New Haven Hospital; American Gastroenterological Association Fellow; Fellow of the Royal Society of Medicine

John Geibel, MD, MSc, DSc, AGAF is a member of the following medical societies: American Gastroenterological Association, American Physiological Society, American Society of Nephrology, Association for Academic Surgery, International Society of Nephrology, New York Academy of Sciences, Society for Surgery of the Alimentary Tract

Disclosure: Nothing to disclose.

Acknowledgements

The authors and editors of Medscape Reference gratefully acknowledge the contributions of previous coauthor, Joseph McCadams, MD, to the development and writing of this article.

What to Do After an Electric Shock

By Renee Nordstrand on December 3, 2020

While electricity has revolutionized the way we live our lives, the truth is that it can be a very dangerous source of energy. Electricity, when not properly controlled, can very easily lead to catastrophic injuries, and even death. Knowing how to properly respond to an electric shock could be the difference between life and death.

What an Electrical Shock Looks Like

You can experience an electric shock from any number of machines, many of which may be found around your own home. Lighting, electric appliances, and outlets can all be the culprit behind electric shocks. Knowing what an electric shock looks like can help you provide aid to anyone suffering from one, as well as prevent you from injuring yourself. Some telltale signs that someone experiences a serious electric shock are:

• Muscle spasms
• Sudden loss of consciousness
• Problems breathing
• Intense headache
• Irregular heartbeat
• Burns
• Seizures
• Difficulty hearing and seeing

If you notice these symptoms within yourself, or you see someone else exhibiting them, then chances are high that you or they are experiencing a severe electric shock. These kinds of accidents can be incredibly dangerous and have a lasting impact on your life.

The Dangers of Electric Shocks

Electric shocks can result in a number of dangerous injuries, the most common one being electrical burns. Unlike thermal burns, which happen when you are exposed to high heat, electrical burns can quickly travel throughout your entire body, causing catastrophic damage to your deep tissues, nerves, and even your bones. Such burns, if severe enough, can cause scarring, limb loss, and even permanent disabilities.

Electrical shocks can also cause heart attacks and seizures, leading to heart and brain damage. The result can be impaired cognitive ability, permanent heart problems, or death if the shock is extreme enough. The truth is that one faulty appliance in your house, whether it’s a coffee machine or a microwave, can lead to a tragic accident. Knowing how to respond to an electric shock can save your life or the life of your loved one.

How to Respond to a Severe Electric Shock

If you are experiencing an electric shock, then you should try to get away from the source of the electricity as soon as possible. Long-term contact with electricity can cause lasting damage, and the safest thing you can do is get away from it or shut off the source of the power. Once you are safely away from the power source, call for medical assistance and inform them of what happened. You will want to explain any symptoms you have so that they can walk you through any immediate steps you can take to avoid other injuries, especially if you are at risk of losing consciousness or suffering cardiac arrest.

On the other hand, if someone else is experiencing an electric shock, then you should do your best to help them. However, not knowing how to properly help them can lead to you getting shocked yourself, as electricity can flow from body to body. If you want to help someone experiencing a severe electric shock, then:

• Do not touch them if they are still in contact with the source of the electricity
• If possible, turn off the flow of electricity
• If not possible, move the source of electricity away from them using something made from rubber or wood, so long as they are not wet
• Do not move the shocked person as that can exacerbate their injuries, unless they are in danger of further electric shocks
• Call for medical assistance and explain what happened
• Follow all instructions given to you by the medical professionals
• Be sure to check the shocked person’s pulse and breathing

Unfortunately, even if you follow these steps perfectly, you or the person you are helping could still end up severely injured. That is why it is so vital for manufacturing companies, building owners, and maintenance workers to ensure that all appliances, power lines, and electrical wiring are safely manufactured and installed. If the source of your electric shock was defective, then you may have a personal injury claim on your hands. For a free consultation with an experienced Santa Barbara personal injury attorney and some friendly legal advice, call NordstrandBlack PC at (805) 962-2022. We are ready to help.

Home emergency situations

Knowing what to do can save a life.

Power Outages: What to do

Check the source

Try resetting your circuit breakers to see if the problem is a short circuit in your home’s electrical system. If other homes in your neighborhood are dark, it’s probably a power outage.

Check our outage map for more information and updates, like when power is expected to be restored.

Report the outage

To report an outage, you can either log in to My Account or call SRP at (602) 236-8888

You’ll want to have your account number ready. (It’s located on the top left portion of your bill.) That helps us know where the power outage is.

If you don’t have a bill handy, you can provide the address of the location experiencing the outage.

Turn off your lights and appliances

Your computer. Your TV. Your dishwasher. Turning off all electronic appliances helps protect them from voltage fluctuations when power returns. It also helps prevent a circuit overload.

After power is restored, wait at least one minute before turning everything back on.

Sign up for outage alerts

Get real-time updates about area outages via text or email when you sign up for outage alerts.

Electrical Shock: What to do

When outlets go uncovered, electrical wires become frayed or cords get damaged, contact with electricity can happen. And it can be fatal.

How to prevent electrical shock in your home

• If you have young children, cover all of your home’s outlets with socket guards.
• Check your home’s electrical outlets and cords for damage. Replace any that show signs of wear.
• Only use extension cords listed by a recognized certification organization, such as Underwriters Laboratories (they will have “UL listed” in their product description).
• Never drape electrical cords or wires over radiators, pipes or other metal objects.
• Keep electrical appliances away from water (sinks, showers, bathtubs, etc.).





• Always use a Ground Fault Circuit Interrupters (GFCI) when working with electrical tools near water.

What to do if someone touches a live electrical wire

• Don’t touch them directly. If you see someone come into contact with electricity, do not touch them directly. You could also get shocked.
• Shut off the power, if possible. If you’re close to your home’s circuit breaker, turn off power to that part of the house.





• Separate them from the source. If you’re not able to shut off the power immediately, use a non-conductor (like a rope or a wooden broom handle) to separate the person from the current.




• Call for help. Once you’ve turned the power off or separated the person from the current, call 911 for help.

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Regresar al principio

Electrical Fires: What to do

Never use water on an electrical fire. Instead, use baking soda or a multipurpose or dry chemical fire extinguisher. Try unplugging the item or cutting power at the control panel if you can. Then call 911 right away.

How to prevent electrical fires

• Test your breaker panels. Make sure they’re labeled correctly and that you’re able to shut off power quickly if you need to.
• Inspect your outlets. Keep flammable materials away from outlets, especially ones in use.
• Know the limits of your power strip. If you’re using a power strip, be sure not to overload the strip or connect multiple strips together.
• Invest in surge protectors. Using surge protectors can help protect your electronics from overheating after a power surge.

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Regresar al principio

A decades-long fight over an electric shock treatment led to an FDA ban. But the fight is far from over.

Rico Torres was just eight the first time school staffers strapped electrodes to his legs and shocked him. They draped a 12-volt battery over his shoulders in a backpack, while a nearby teacher held a clear plastic box with a photo of his face attached. When Torres misbehaved, the teacher would reach inside the box and push a button that sent a two-second jolt of electricity coursing through his body.

Under his court-approved treatment plan, Torres could be shocked for threatening to hit another student or for running away, swearing or screaming, refusing to follow directions or “inappropriate urination,” according to court records obtained by NBC News. One employee, he said, used to shock him in his sleep.

“Because I didn’t wake up, she shocked me,” recalled Torres, now 24. “Then I ended up peeing the bed, so she shocked me again.”

The electrodes stayed on his skin 24 hours a day for most of a decade, until he was 18. The device, called a graduated electronic decelerator (GED), was part of his treatment at Judge Rotenberg Educational Center in Canton, Mass., which has for half a century been one of the most controversial institutions for people with disabilities in the country. It’s thought to be the only place in the world that uses electric shocks to modify behavior — a treatment the United Nations has called torture.

In early March last year, just one week before the declaration of the Covid-19 pandemic, the Food and Drug Administration took the rare step of banning the device, finding that the significant risk of harm outweighed any medical benefit it could bring. It is only the third such ban in the agency’s history.

It seemed like the culmination of a decades-long battle between disability rights activists, former residents and the state of Massachusetts on one side — pushing to stop the use of the device or shut the school down altogether — and the center and its supporters, many of them parents who say the school, and the shock device, saved their children’s lives.

The ban should have meant victory for those fighting the school, but more than a year later, it hasn’t actually changed anything. Due to court battles and the pandemic, none of the 55 residents currently approved for treatment with the device will be required to transition off it until further legal decisions. If past litigation over the school’s use of the GED is any indication, that could be years.

Supporters say that the methods used by the center, which serves a mix of children and adults, are the best and sometimes last hope to address some of the most difficult developmental and emotional disability cases in the country. Many students at the center have severe autism spectrum disorders and are non-verbal and dangerously self-harming — some have been kicked out of or rejected by half a dozen other schools and treatment programs.

The GED is “only used as a treatment of last resort, and its recipients are at risk of grievous bodily harm, or even death, without it,” the Judge Rotenberg Center and the JRC Parents Association said in a joint statement. The groups called the FDA ban “arbitrary and capricious” and the GED a court-approved and monitored “life-saving” treatment.

Today, those approved for the device are all over the age of 18 with severe developmental disabilities. Some were first put on it years or even decades ago, when they were children. The FDA ban required new treatment plans for anyone on the device and for them to be moved off it within 180 days. Those transitions are now stalled while the pandemic state of emergency remains in effect. JRC is also challenging the ban in federal court.

When the ban was announced, disability rights advocates rejoiced. Nancy Weiss, who has been advocating against the use of painful procedures at JRC since 1993, recalls weeping on the phone with a former school resident. “We really thought that was it, but it’s not,” she said a year later.

A teacher wears shock treatment transmitters during class at Judge Rotenberg Center in Canton, Mass., in 2010.Rick Friedman / Corbis via Getty Images file

Weiss, the director of the National Leadership Consortium on Developmental Disabilities at the University of Delaware, keeps a running timeline of all the efforts to change the school’s practices or close it all together, and the extensive legal battles around it.

“I think it’s going to drag on,” she said. “I’m 67, I’m retiring this year. I think if I see the place close before I die, it will be a miracle.”

‘Drugged up to the gills’

The Judge Rotenberg Center has been controversial since its start in the 1970s. It was established, under a different name in neighboring Rhode Island, to take the most difficult cases and use aversive, or negative, consequences to modify behavior — from slaps with paddles to pinches, white noise helmets, and noxious smells like ammonia. The controversy grew after the center created the GED in the early 1990s, generating national media attention and a slew of lawsuits.

The school said the GED worked in cases where other treatments did not, but it also found that over time the efficacy of the device declined for some students. So the institution created a second version of the device with a stronger electric current, which JRC’s founding director Matthew Israel told NBC News is “much more powerful” and “much more effective.”

JRC has long defended its practices as the most humane approach for the most challenging-to-treat cases. The shock device “has no detrimental effects whatsoever,” Israel told ABC News in 2007. In a conversation at the time with correspondent Cynthia McFadden, now with NBC News, he said the GED had to hurt to work and pushed back against allegations that the device was torture.

“The real torture,” Israel said, “is what these children are subjected to if they don’t have this program. They’re drugged up to the gills with drugs that cause them to be so sedated that they essentially sleep all day.”

The school has weathered controversy thanks to a team of lawyers and a core group of devoted family members like Louisa Goldberg, a longtime parent advocate. Like many of the school’s staunchest defenders, her son Andrew arrived as a teenager, and has remained there for two decades.

In 2019, JRC assembled a group of 30 family members of residents, who spoke to NBC News about the struggles they faced seeking care for their loved ones, many of whom have histories of severe self-harm. They were hospitalized, retrained, drugged into stupors and secluded in padded rooms, the families said. They argue — to courts, to the FDA, and to NBC News — that JRC and its unorthodox practices saved their children’s lives.

“This treatment is just wonderful,” said Goldberg. Before arriving at JRC, Andrew was extremely aggressive, she said. He was heavily medicated and restrained until he “ultimately became a zombie,” she said, but after going on the GED, his aggression stopped and his personality came out.

Goldberg’s story was echoed by the gathered families. When nothing else worked, they said, and nowhere else would take their loved ones and provide full-time care, JRC did. So the parents are fighting to keep the school open, and fighting hard.

‘That hurts!’

Their opposition includes disability rights activists and former residents like Torres, who say the GED is extremely painful and used to control minor misbehavior like swearing or failing to follow directions (JRC disputes both claims).

Torres, who was sent to the school for severe behavior disorders, was born to deaf parents who lost custody of him for substance abuse-related neglect when he was three. He spent his early childhood bouncing between schools, treatment programs and several psychiatric hospitalizations due to violent behavior.

Rico Torres spent nearly a decade, and much of his living memory, attached to the GED at the Judge Rotenberg Center.NBC News

By the time he was seven, Torres had been diagnosed with a range of disorders from ADHD to attachment disorder and his behavior had become increasingly violent. After a psychiatric hospitalization, he was transferred to JRC. A year after he arrived at the school, they fitted him with the backpack he would wear for most of the next decade.

“I was really aggressive as a child,” Torres said. “I don’t know where my violence came from, but I know that my mom and my dad weren’t the best of parents.”

Torres said that the shocks did not give him what he needed most — help in communicating with others, given his early childhood in a non-speaking home. He still struggles with it.

“What they’re doing is just taking people that have issues and just building more,” he said.

Activists point to a history of scandals as examples of how the GED can be abused and why the school should be shuttered. Three students died at the school between 1985 and 1990, including one who died while restrained. After the introduction of the GED in the early 90s, the most controversial cases centered around the device.

In 2002, resident Andre McCollins was tied to a restraint board for seven hours and shocked 31 times after he didn’t take off his jacket when told to. The episode only became public a decade later, when a video of McCollins screaming “Stop! Stop!” and “That hurts!” while being repeatedly shocked surfaced during a lawsuit brought by his mother. McCollins spent more than a month hospitalized after the incident, never returning to JRC.

In 2007, another student was shocked 77 times in just one night, after a prank caller instructed staff to do so. Several years later, director Matthew Israel was accused of destroying a surveillance tape of that night and indicted on obstruction of justice charges. Israel entered a deferred prosecution agreement, which let him plead not guilty, but required five years probation and that he resign as director of the school, which he’d run for 40 years. The charges were dismissed after the probation period.

Israel is now retired and living in California. He told NBC News that while he knows the treatment is not popular, the GED was necessary for cases where nothing else worked, and he believes he made a “contribution to mankind” by pioneering the use of the GED.

Back in Massachusetts, Glenda Crookes, who took over as executive director when Israel stepped down in 2011, said the incidents that sparked public outcry are all in the past. “We made countless changes to our policies and procedures, including limitations to the GED device and a different set of training for the staff that are certified to utilize the GED device.”

‘Very few places’

Many of those who have been put on the GED are non-verbal, so cannot speak for themselves, but several former residents who wore the device for years testified to the FDA when the agency was considering the ban, sharing their negative experiences.

“Most of the times [after getting shocked] I would get a very bad muscle cramp that would last me for one to two days. I would get burn marks on my skin,” said one.

“My experiences from the GED have affected me to this very day,” said another. “I now suffer from a fear of authority, a fear of being controlled, and I panic when presented with either.”

NBC News spoke to three behavioral health experts, who described the use of painful, negative feedback as an obsolete treatment.

A GED shock device used at the Judge Rotenberg Educational Center in Canton, Mass.NBC NewsA student wearing a shocking device on her leg, lines up with classmates after lunch at the Judge Rotenberg Educational Center in Canton, Mass., on Aug. 13, 2014.Charles Krupa / AP file

“Many years ago, people thought maybe you would learn faster if you not only got things that you like when you did something people wanted you to do, but if you had some negative event right after you do something you’re not supposed to,” said Catherine Lord, distinguished professor of psychiatry at the UCLA School of Medicine, whose research focuses on autism and related disorders. “There was some data that people did learn faster, but the point was that once the negative goes away, the old habits come back.”

For lasting change, experts told NBC News, research supports developing positive behaviors through teaching and rewarding the alternative, less-harmful behaviors, rather than just de-incentivizing undesirable ones. Part of the challenge, though, of applying that research to severe self-harm cases is that they often require specialized, round-the-clock care that can be near impossible to get.

“As a country, we don’t have adequate services for kids who really need very significant, specialized and often 24-hour support,” Lord said. “There are very few places in the United States that address this well, and those spots are hard to come by and they’re very expensive.”

JRC has long filled that gap, advertising its “near-zero rejection/expulsion policy” to desperate parents and school systems with nowhere else to send children. Today, many of the school’s students, though not necessarily those wearing GEDs, are teenagers of color with emotional and behavioral issues sent by schools, family courts and the juvenile justice system, many from New York City’s low-income areas.

Torres was one of those students. He said he was also one of the few students without severe developmental disabilities using the GED. He was put on the device roughly a year into his time at the school because “less intrusive behavior modification techniques” had not been successful, according to his treatment plan, which had to be approved by a local judge.

In his final years there, still wearing the GED, the FDA began looking into the device. The agency assembled a panel of experts to study it, held hearings, and received thousands of pages of testimony and documentation from the school. After two years, the FDA announced it would ban the GED, but took another four years to finalize the rule.

It finally banned the devices on March 6, 2020, stating “they present an unreasonable and substantial risk of illness or injury.” The ban applies to a category of “electrical stimulation devices used for self-injurious or aggressive behavior,” but, the agency noted, only one facility in the country uses such devices — the Judge Rotenberg Center.

A student at the Judge Rotenberg Center completes an activity on a touch screen in 2019.NBC News

JRC decried the ban, saying in a statement that it would prove in court that during its rulemaking process, the FDA “abandoned science” and “ignored countless hours of testimony and volumes of information, and hid expert testimony supporting the use of the GED.”

It has since petitioned a federal court to review the ban. JRC has successfully used courts to quash opposition through decades of government challenges, including actions by the states of Massachusetts and New York, and the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid. A ruling in favor of the school after one state attempt to stop it from using aversives in the 1980s, before the use of the GED, led the school to rename itself after the judge that ruled in its favor.

With around 275 residents, at an average cost of $275,000 per student per year — largely covered by state governments and school systems, JRC takes in more than $78.6 million in gross receipts yearly, according to recent tax documents. The school has a lawyer who has represented it for more than 30 years. It paid his firm $1.7 million in 2018.

During his time at JRC, Torres said he was one of the youngest people on the device, and one of the few able to speak. He describes it as an isolating, humiliating experience. Torres has been back in New York City for three years now, but said he is still trying to figure out how to function in regular society.

He spent nearly half his life attached to the GED, and much of his living memory. When he finally had his electrodes removed, he said he began having cravings and trouble sleeping.

“My pain tolerance has gone to the point that I can’t really feel anything. I get tattoos as a reminder of it,” Torres said. “Sometimes all I crave is pain.”

how to help without putting yourself in danger

At work

Electric shocks can be fatal. Each year there around 1000 accidents at work involving electric shock or burns are reported to the Health and Safety Executive. Furthermore, around 30 of these are fatal. The majority of these fatalities arise from contact with power cables, either overhead or underground.

At home

Of the accidents involving electric shocks which take place in the home, many involve children biting electrical cords or poking a metal object into electrical sockets. Or they happen when an electrical appliance meets water such as a bath or paddling pool. Water greatly increases the risk of fatality.

The shocking facts and figures about electric shocks

• electrical burn injuries account for around 5% of burns unit admissions

• for each death, there are two serious injuries and 36 reported electric shocks

• death is most common in young males, at a ratio of 9 male deaths to 1 female death, with most deaths occur in spring or summer months

• electricians are at highest risk group due to their jobs. Those working with electrical tools also form a significant proportion of this patient group

High voltage danger

The danger from an electrical shock depends on the type of current, how high the voltage is, how the current travelled through the body, the person’s overall health and how quickly the person is treated. If the person survives the initial shock, their prognosis is usually good. However, even when the electric shock is not fatal, it can lead to permanent injury.

Your own safety is paramount

If you touch someone who is holding onto an electrical wire with a live current, there is a strong chance that you will be electrocuted too. As a result, it is vital you always ensure the area is safe if someone has been electrocuted.

Do not touch them until you have turned the electricity off at the mains. Furthermore, ensure you know where the mains is located and how to turn it off. Touching the socket where the appliance is plugged in, before disconnecting the mains, could lead to further injury.

Stop the current

If someone has had an electric shock, switch off the electrical current at the mains to break the contact between the person and the electrical supply.

Can’t reach the mains supply?

If you can’t stop the electrical current, move the source away from you and the person using a dry, non-conducting object made of cardboard, plastic or wood. A wooden broom handle can work.

If a baby or child has grasped a damaged wire, it is possible the electric shock can cause muscle spasm and as a result they will be unable to let go. Always try and switch off the power supply. Once the electricity has been switched off, they are safe to touch.

When to dial 999 or 112 for an ambulance

If the person isn’t breathing or if the injured person experiences any of the following dial 999.

Severe burns

Confusion

Difficulty breathing

Heart rhythm problems (arrhythmias)

Cardiac arrest

Muscle pain and contractions

Seizures

Loss of consciousness

Whilst waiting for medical help:

Check for response and then check for breathing.

Unconscious and breathing

If they are unconscious and breathing – put them into the recovery position.

Click here for how to put in the recovery position

Unconscious and not breathing

If they are unconscious and not breathing or show no signs of circulation such as coughing or movement – start CPR. Click here to learn how to do CPR

Conscious and breathing

If they are conscious and appear ok, do get them checked by a medical professional.

Don’t be distracted by burns

Do not be distracted by any burns. Electrical burns have an entry and exit and burn all the way through the inside. Therefore, the electrical burn itself, may not be the most important injury. Furthermore keep checking for more serious and possibly life-threatening conditions resulting from the electric shock.

Heart and electric shocks

Electrocution can interrupt the heart rhythm. Electrical burns can go right through the body.

Waiting for the emergency response

• treat superficial burns with cool, running water

UK socket safety

It is extremely difficult to electrocute yourself with a UK socket as all sockets have built in automatic shutters for protection.

However, sockets are not the only source of electric current, and babies have little fingers and are curious; hence the importance of knowing the appropriate first aid response.

Certain socket covers can damage sockets and remove the automatic shutters – be extremely careful when choosing socket covers to ensure they meet the appropriate safety standards.

Faulty wiring and electric shocks

Old electrical appliances can have wires which become damaged and frayed over time and can, as a result, can give an electric shock when touched. Sometimes pets can chew and damage wires and they too can experience electric shocks – click here to learn more about how to help your pet if they have been electrocuted.

Have your electrics regularly checked by a qualified electrician.

Read our article about dealing with electric shocks and pets by clicking here

It is strongly advised that you complete an online or attend a practical or online first aid course to understand what to do in a medical emergency. Click here or call 0208 675 4036 for more information about our courses. First Aid for Life provides this information for guidance and it is not in any way a substitute for medical advice. First Aid for Life is not responsible or liable for any diagnosis made or actions taken based on this information.

First aid for electric shock

Any person in life can expect emergencies in which decisions must be made instantly, and the lives of other people can sometimes depend on these decisions. Knowledgeable means protected. So that you do not get overwhelmed by panic in an extreme situation, you must know the basic rules of rescue in case of electric shock. With electric shock, a person is seized by convulsions and spasm of the vocal cords.Under the influence of a spasm, a person is unable to call for help. Electrical Shock Symptoms – Convulsive unnatural muscle contraction.

• Nausea, dizziness, cold sweat.
• Clouding of mind and loss of consciousness.
• Pale and blue lips.
• Violation of cardiac activity.
• Respiratory arrest.

First aid should be provided to the victim immediately, immediately after the accident.

FIRST AID MEASURES

• Try to eliminate the current source. If there is a switch in the room, then immediately turn it off, unscrew the plugs or unplug the appliance. – Never touch the injured person with your bare hands while the mains voltage is present. You can also be seriously hurt. For these purposes, you can take any wooden stick with which to flip the cord, or put on rubber gloves and push the victim away from the power source.- If the victim is conscious, lay him down and call an ambulance. – Before the doctors arrive, try to assess the patient’s condition. If the victim is in a difficult position, unconscious, it is necessary to carefully monitor his current state: to measure the pulse and listen to the heartbeat. If cardiac arrest occurs, immediately begin mouth-to-mouth resuscitation and chest compressions. In this case, the victim should be warmed up with warm blankets, heating pads or clothing. – Sterile dressings should be applied to the burned areas.If the affected area is small, then you can use bandages, but if it is quite large, then you can use clean sheets for these purposes. Do not smear burns with ointments, sprinkle with powders or spray with aerosols. In general, in this case, the basic rules for treating burns apply.

• If the victim has fractures, then the broken limb should be fixed motionlessly with a splint. – Regardless of the state of health, the victim should be taken to the hospital in a lying state, on a stretcher, since at any time a heart attack or respiratory arrest may occur.It should be remembered that the consequences of an electric shock may not appear immediately, but after a few hours or even days. Therefore, for some time the victim must be under compulsory medical supervision.

Memo “First aid in case of electric shock”

How to give first aid in case of electric shock

An electric shock is the case when a person must be shown honey.workers, even if first aid was provided competently.

The current can hit internal organs, for example, the heart or lungs, but this will not be noticeable right away, and problems will appear later. For the same reason, after a strong electric shock, it is necessary to constantly observe the victim, check his state of health, if necessary, immediately show the medical staff.

However, it is in our power to take measures to preserve human health, to save his life after being electrocuted, until an ambulance arrived at the scene.help.

Algorithm of actions in providing assistance to an electric shock victim

Call the medical team as soon as possible and start saving the person. It is better if several people do this at the same time. The algorithm of your actions:

1. If possible, immediately turn off the electrical installation, part of which the victim touched. It is necessary to stop the influence of the current on him as soon as possible. The consequences will depend on how long the current will act.It can be very difficult or impossible for a person to unclench his hand or move away when an electric current hits, therefore urgent outside help is required.

2. When it is not possible to turn off the installation, and a person holds on to the edge of a cable or wire, the cable can be cut off with an ax or other similar tool. The ax should have an insulated handle – wood or plastic. It must be dry.

3. In electrical installations up to 1000 Volts, the use of improvised means is allowed (all of them must be dry and insulated).To pull a person, you can use wooden sticks, boards, dry ropes. Provided the affected person has dry clothing, pull on them. In this case, you need to be careful and observe precautions, take care of your own safety: do not touch the person himself, his bare skin, as well as any metal objects and wet things.

4. In electrical installations above 1000 Volts, special tools and protective equipment must already be used: dielectric gloves, boots or galoshes, as well as insulating rods and tongs.

Protection against electric shock

1. Place a dry wooden plank or plywood under the person who has fallen.

2. Check for a pulse on both the wrist and neck.

3. Check the pupils: too wide pupils will indicate that the blood supply to the victim’s brain has deteriorated greatly.

Further actions depend on the state of the person after exposure to the current.

First aid for electric shock

The simplest measures are taken if he is conscious. The affected person must be provided with peace. While you are waiting for medical help, put him as comfortably as possible, cover him with a blanket, constantly check his breathing and pulse. In the presence of burns, bruises or fractures, appropriate first aid is required. If nothing like this is found, do not try to give the victim any medications.

A person who has lost consciousness also needs peace. It is important to check if he is breathing while doing this. It is necessary to lay it on a soft mat, to unbutton the clothes on it so that it does not interfere with breathing, to provide oxygen access. Also, rescue measures include cleansing the mouth: blood and mucus can accumulate in its cavity. Before the arrival of the medical team, you need to try to warm the victim, as well as monitor the state of his breathing.

The algorithm of action includes artificial respiration and chest compressions if the victim shows no signs of life or breathes intermittently.Before starting these procedures, as in the previous case, you need to free the affected person from the restraining clothing, and also clean his oral cavity. Continue to do artificial respiration and massage until the person comes to his senses or the medical staff arrives.

90,000 WHAT TO DO IF I HAVE AN ELECTRIC SHOCK?

It’s hard to imagine modern life without electricity. More precisely, it is completely impossible, because every day, hour, minute of our life is associated with objects that exist only due to the influence of the current.Therefore, in the enlightened world of illuminated and charged objects, in which the words “tension” and “strength” have a real physical effect, it is important to know what to do if the current struck a person and what not to do so as not to become a victim yourself.

Emergency doctor of the Presidential Clinic Evgeny Mitin again
talks about the rules of first aid, this time about how to act in case of electric shock.

This material is directed to non-professionals who witnessed an accident, so that they can provide first aid before the arrival of the medical team.

SAFETY ABOVE TOTAL

Imagine a situation: in front of us lies a person unconscious, what happened to him for sure, we do not even know. But a wire located next to it, or an electrical object, give us reason to believe that the person has suffered from the effects of the current. (If we ourselves have witnessed defeat, then, of course, such conclusions are useless).

And now, we are already ready to go to the rescue, but before rushing into the battle for our lives, it is important to remember the rules of salvation in such situations:

one.STOP the electricity supply, turn off the switch, and only then proceed to the rescue. Remember that both the person and the surface the work cable is on are capable of conducting current. Therefore, any careless movement can make you a victim of an unfortunate incident.

2. CALL THE AMBULANCE. It is advisable that all these actions are performed not by one person, but by several – this way it will be possible to save time, which is more important than ever in an emergency situation.

3.TAKE AN OBJECT with which you can remove the wire at a safe distance for you and the victim. A branch of a tree, or something made of plastic and rubber, is best suited – these materials do not conduct current.

4. AS ONLY YOU HAVE SECURE YOUR OWN SAFETY, you should not run to the rescue anyway: you need to approach the victim with a small shuffling movement of the legs, the so-called “goose step” – the heel of one leg, without taking off from the ground, is put to the toe of the other leg.

Why is it important? A damaged wire, especially if there is still voltage in it, is dangerous even from a distance. There were such cases that a person did not even have time to come into contact with the current, as he fell backwards from its influence: the whole point is in the step voltage that arises between the legs of a person walking through the area where the fallen working cables or wires are located. This tension increases with increasing stride length, and vice versa. Therefore, you need to move in short steps, without lifting your feet from the ground, even if you are convinced that the power supply is cut off.Vigilance and accuracy in this situation is the best help.

AX TO HELP US

As soon as we are next to the victim, it is necessary to eliminate the source of the injury, but not with bare hands, but by the very object that does not conduct current. We were lucky enough to find a branch nearby.

Previously, for all types of work with electricity and wires, it was always recommended to put an ax next to it.They could cut the cable and stop the current in an emergency. But it is possible without an ax, the main thing is to turn off the electricity supply and throw the striking wire at a safe distance.

FIRST NON-MEDICAL CARE

We made sure of safety, got to the victim, removed all damaging wires and cables – now we can start providing first non-medical aid.

1. Assess the person’s condition, check his pulse and breathing if he is unconscious.

2. If they are violated, try to restore these vital functions – do chest compressions and artificial respiration.

3. Continue resuscitation until an ambulance arrives.

ON SECURITY AGAIN

The above points will help reduce the risk of electric shock for the rescuer himself. But you need to understand that the risk, especially in the case of electricity, still remains. Therefore, if we see that we cannot provide assistance to the victim without endangering ourselves, we should not do this. We already have one victim, who needs the second?

Consider the case: a man is lying on the roof of an electric train, he was electrocuted due to contact with networks and wires. In order to get it out of there, you need to climb onto the roof.But if we follow this logic, then we will also be struck by the current. Therefore, it is better to call specialists for help, who will first turn off the electricity and lower the victim from the surface of the car.

HOW NOT TO BECOME A VICTIM?

We described a situation in which we had to be rescuers, but still, what to do, or rather what not to do, so as not to be in the victim’s place ourselves?

First, let us clarify that, of course, there can be many reasons for electric shock: from a lightning strike to contact with an electrical appliance in our kitchen.But each situation has its own “NOT”, which it is desirable to follow in order not to suffer.

1. During a thunderstorm, of course, it is better to be at home. But if you find yourself on the street, then you should not hide under tall trees, lampposts, in a metal booth, and be near power lines. Lightning strikes an object that is close to it. From our side, it may be the tallest object in the area, most often metal.That is why, in villages, lightning rods are a metal pike, which, in the event of an impact, takes it upon itself, protecting houses in the vicinity from the effects of lightning.

2. Lightning nevertheless does not happen often: today, an electric shock can most likely be obtained from devices and equipment that abundantly surround us. In this case, of course, it is important to observe the main safety rule – do not touch the switched on electrical appliances with wet hands. This also applies to our electric kettles, mixers, hair dryers, as well as cell phones connected to a charger.Think about your safety before you come into contact with this or that electrical appliance and be healthy!

90,000 How I fought a bad habit with electric shock

• Tiffany Veen
• BBC Future

June 22, 2017

Photo by iStock

Does punishment – say, electric shocks – or money fines help a habit? To disaccustom herself to falling asleep with a smartphone in her hand, the BBC Future columnist has tried some radical methods.

On my wrist – quite a massive piece. This is a silicone bracelet with a built-in rechargeable battery capable of delivering an electric shock of over 200 volts.

The lightning bolt on the top of the bright red bracelet reminds me of its purpose.

Judging by the special program in my smartphone, the device is charged and adjusted for the weakest impact. All I have to do is click on the lightning icon and get an electric shock.

The device is called Pavlok, and it is controversial.Someone says that it is a trinket, and someone claims that it helped to get rid of the habit of biting nails or swallowing candy one by one.

Manish Seti, founder of Pavlok, claims the device can kill a bad habit in just five days.

Why do I need it? I want to wean myself from falling asleep with a smartphone in my hands. Experts believe that this habit of mine can contribute to sleep disturbances and even lead to temporary blindness.

In this video BBC Click correspondent Stephen Beckett demonstrates how Pavlock works.( In , the ideo was recorded under the safety conditions – as it should be when devices that create an electric discharge are used.)

The name “Pavlok” is, of course, an allusion to the name of the famous Russian physiologist Ivan Pavlov, known for which caused the experimental dogs to salivate at the call preceding feeding.

The Pavlok developers hope that users will subject themselves to a slight electric shock every time they feel that they cannot cope with one of their bad habits – in my case, it is reading from a smartphone screen in bed.

The calculation is that when a habit is associated in a person with such an unpleasant thing as an electric shock, it gradually dies away.

Photo by iStock

Photo caption,

Maybe paying a small fine to your loved one will work?

In the end I mustered up enough courage to shock myself. At 50% settings, the shock was such that it was impossible to ignore and forget.

So can punishments – be it a light electric discharge or, say, fines – really change our behavior for the better?

Encouragement or Pain?

Punishment is a kind of instrument for developing a conditioned reflex.While reward is a consequence that reinforces and affirms us in certain behaviors, punishment should weaken the wrong tendencies that are born in our heads.

Researchers have tried to compare how people react to both. For example, in one such experiment, participants were deprived of a small amount of “money” (tokens) or rewarded with such, depending on the success of the task.

Small fines have been found to be more effective at influencing behavior change than rewards, even if the latter are significantly larger.

“This means that the brain reacts differently to gains and losses,” says Jan Kubanek, a Stanford researcher. “Your response to loss is equally strong whether you lose 5 or 25 cents.”

Not so with rewards. “If you buy 5 cents, you are more likely to make the same choice again the next time. However, when you get 25 cents, the likelihood of the same choice increases,” he explains. …While any loss of magnitude leads to an equally strong “avoid!”

Kubanek believes that the results of these experiments can be useful outside the laboratory – when it will be necessary to determine to what extent negative responses or punishment can help. For example, at a university, professors can apply this knowledge to structure a grading system.

Research shows that the threat of punishment influences our behavior.In one of the experiments, it was demonstrated that even one image of the eyes is enough to prevent littering in this place – it seemed to people that someone was looking at them. (However, in subsequent studies, replicating the “effect of the watching eyes” proved to be quite difficult.)

In his book God is Watching You, Dominic Johnson argues that the fear of punishment from above is from God or from hell. in connection with karma – provides an additional degree of cooperation within society, independent of the activities of the institutions of power.

“The powers of governments and the police are limited. They cannot keep track of everything, and the possibilities of punishment are also limited,” Johnson says. least for those who believe in them. ”

This idea is supported by some research – for example, psychologist Azim Sharif, who found that the level of crime in society depends on the belief in the existence of hell.

“Some were upset, but it turns out that people are more willing to cooperate when they are afraid of going to hell, rather than when they want to go to heaven,” says Johnson.

Photo author, iStock

Photo caption,

Some researchers have noticed that the eyes drawn on the wall are enough for people to follow their behavior. True, this does not always work

This very likelihood of being punished may be the reason that Pavlok was very effective for some people.

I have a prominent lightning bolt on my red bracelet. This alone is enough for me to remember: I need to punish myself with an electric shock for lying in bed with a smartphone!

The bracelet served its purpose – I kept it in mind and spent much less time on the Internet in the evenings.

However, voluntarily subjecting myself to electroshock for reading Facebook in bed, I have not achieved a complete refusal to use a smartphone before bed.

And here’s what worked, at least for the next week. I imposed a huge fine on myself, which I paid to my own husband – and he had the right to spend this money on anything.

Just one long evening spent in bed with a smartphone – and the amount was so impressive that I swore to do it again (but when my experiment ended, I returned to my bad habits).

Looks like I can live with it – constantly electrocuting myself and spending money on a regular basis.But isn’t that too high a price to pay for an innocent habit?

To read the original of this article in English, visit BBC Future .

Lipetsk teenager received a severe electric shock on the roof of a railway car

The child’s condition is extremely serious. Doctors are fighting for his life

On Saturday, February 13, a 14-year-old teenager received a powerful electric shock from a contact network on the roof of a railway car.The tragedy took place in the evening in the Dachny area. With severe burns and injuries, the victim in an extremely serious condition was hospitalized in the Lipetsk Regional Children’s Hospital. Doctors are fighting for his life.

Despite constant warnings that Russian Railways facilities are an area of ​​increased danger, reminding of the rules of conduct on tracks, crossings, near supports and wires, unfortunately, it is impossible to avoid annual losses.

Children and adolescents are at risk.Most often, misfortunes happen to them while walking along the tracks (and even wearing headphones and hoods that muffle the sound of the approaching composition), crossing the canvas in front of a moving train, trying to climb onto or jump off a platform. And, of course, a special “chic” and at the same time deadly trick – traveling on the roof of a carriage or an automatic coupler.

There are plenty of reports of troubles like the one that happened in Dachnoye throughout the country. In the fall of last year, under the same circumstances, a 17-year-old boy died in the neighboring Voronezh region.Similar tragedies are recorded in Moscow and the Moscow region, St. Petersburg, Krasnodar Territory, Murmansk Region, Primorye and many other regions.

What pushes the guys to frankly reckless acts – a thirst for adventure, a desire to prove coolness and fearlessness to friends, modern teenage fashion? It is not for nothing that the special terms “catching” and “electrifying” were invented in this environment. It’s hard to believe, but sometimes girls climb onto the roof of the carriages for … an unusual selfie.

Obviously, few of the desperate daredevils remember at such moments that entertainment is extremely dangerous. First of all, due to the high voltage of the contact network: on the railway it is 27.5 thousand volts. Arc discharges and burns can be obtained simply by approaching wires less than two meters away. In the air gap between the electrical installation and the human body, an electric arc will arise that can cause injuries incompatible with life.On electrified sections, in no case should you climb the supports, touch the slopes going from the supports to the rails, approach the wire lying on the ground at a distance of closer than 8 meters.

In the Department of Civil Defense and Emergencies of Lipetsk, they urge the guys not to take risks for the sake of dubious “glory”, to include reason and the instinct of self-preservation. Parents are kindly asked to explain to the children the mortal danger of playing with fate on the railroad and, of course, to be more attentive to what their children do in their free time.

News of the day

29.05.2020 12:54

Author: Anastasia Karamysheva

In Miass, a teenager was electrocuted while fishing. The guy touched the wire of the overhead power line with a fishing rod.

The incident took place yesterday afternoon, May 28, near a river near a power line.Two teenagers decided to go fishing in the reservoir. One of the boys approached an unacceptable distance and hit the overhead power line wires with a fishing rod. The current went through the rod and hit the guy. A young resident of Miass was hospitalized in the hospital.

The branch “Rosseti Ural” – “Chelyabenergo” warned fishermen about the danger of fishing near power lines. A rod with a length of 4-12 meters will be enough to get energized and get an electric shock.

“The danger of electricity is that sometimes direct contact with live parts is not required.The risk of injury arises even when approaching them at an unacceptable distance, and the materials from which rods are now made can be an excellent conductor of electricity. It must be remembered that it is unacceptable to fish using fishing rods, spinning rods near power lines, to move in boats under power lines. If a rod or fishing line comes too close to the wires or touches them, not only the person holding the rod, but also the people who are nearby are affected by the electric current.When going under power lines, fold the rod down. It is strictly forbidden to fish during a thunderstorm “, – noted in the press service of” Rosseti Ural “-” Chelyabenergo “.

Photo: free illustrations site pixabay

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90,000 The Boy Who Lived 9,0001

The boy who survived … The next plot is about the real story of a young man who survived after being struck by an electric current of 27 thousand volts. In the meantime, the statistics of fatalities on the railways makes us wary. Children climb onto the carriages, walk along the tracks with headphones. The outcome is very often sad – death. What to do to avoid trouble?

– Take your time.

Although Hamid Mirzabekov’s father asks him not to rush, the boy can’t wait to speed up his rehabilitation. Therefore, even while lying on a hospital bed, he stretches. Parents do not scold much, that is the case when it is just right to say – thank you for being alive.

Hamid was 17 when he walked home through the railway and decided to shorten the path – to climb over the carriage. He was struck by an electric current of 27 thousand volts. Burns all over the body. Resuscitation and foreboding is not a tenant …

Mom tells the story of her son almost in a whisper, quietly.As if she is afraid that the words spoken out loud will remind too vividly the horror that she experienced. Memories are unbearable, her child could die. He was saved by a miracle, she believes, and she knows that not everyone is so lucky.

Unfortunately, the employees of railway stations know all these stories in detail. In the last two years alone, in Makhachkala, there have been 22 cases of injury to adolescents from being hit by a train or being electrocuted. 15 of them were fatal. From the latest cases: in April, at one of the stations in Makhachkala, two teenagers climbed onto a railway tank car.One died from an electric shock.

As it gets warmer during the holidays, there are more people wishing to ride on the roof of a carriage or shorten the path across the rails. In the summer, the police say, as if they broke off the chain. Operatives go out to catch the careless or curious every day.