electrical safety

About electricity for "dummies"

Electric current as the cause of injuries is characterized by a number of features that determine its danger:

• The electric current is invisible, has no smell, no color, it acts noiselessly, and therefore it is not detected by the senses before its action on the body;

• It is impossible to determine the presence of voltage in conductors without special instruments;

• Electric current under certain conditions can have a damaging effect, not only by direct contact with it, but also through objects that a person holds in his hands, and even at a distance; Discharge through the air and through the ground (for example, when a high-voltage wire falls to the ground);

• Current damages tissues not only in the place of its entry and exit, but also in the entire path of passage through the human body;

• When an electric current is applied, there may be a mismatch between the severity of the damage and the duration of its impact, and even a random point contact with the current carrying part of the electrical installation can cause considerable damage in a fraction of a second;

• The source of damage can even be objects that have nothing to do with the electrical installation, even the victims themselves, as long as they come into contact with the current conductor for those who provide them with assistance;

An electric trauma occurs if the victim closes the chain: the conductor - the arm - the trunk - the leg - the floor - the "earth". Other ways of passing the current are also possible, of which the hand is most dangerous.

The most common are two electric trauma: electric shock and electric burn. Burns can also occur when the victim is near a short circuit, if it is accompanied by an electric arc.

The current, passing through the body of the victim, causes a biological effect, usually affecting the cardiovascular and nervous systems.

There is a convulsive contraction of the muscles, which "chains" the victim to the source of current. "Chasing" the effect makes it impossible to self-release from a current source, which significantly increases the time of its action and burdens the injury. The defeat of the nervous and cardiovascular system leads to the arrest of the respiration and heart, or to the disruption of the rhythm of their work. To rescue the victim, it is necessary to release him as soon as possible from the electric current, and then provide him with first aid.

The most common causes of electrical injury

1. Touching or approaching an unacceptable distance to live parts under voltage. In its turn, the reasons for this are:

• Malfunction of wiring, installation products, electrical appliances;

• Carelessness, negligence, inexperience, ignorance of the user;

• Availability of electrical installations for children, their mischief;

• Through live parts that are temporarily disconnected from the network, unless all measures have been taken to shutdown the network; With inconsistency in actions (premature switching on of current).

The elimination of these causes was mentioned above. Recall: keep wiring, installation products and electrical appliances in good order, use them competently. It must be firmly remembered that it is impossible to touch live parts even after switching off. It is also necessary to check the absence of voltage by a special device (indicator).

2. Touching the metal case of the appliance if it has been energized due to damage to the insulation.

In industrial electrical installations, the earthing of the housing serves as a means of protection. However, in most apartments there is no ground wire. The means of protection is the floors made of insulating materials (wood, linoleum, etc.). Therefore, an electrical appliance in a metal casing can only be installed on such a floor.

Do not attempt to ground yourself around the house yourself!

Do not use ground wire as ground!

Do not use various communications (water, sewerage, gas, heating) as the grounding!

Place the washing machine at a sufficient distance from the communications!

If you notice that your device is "tweaking", immediately remove it from use.

How to free a victim from the action of an electric current

If the victim is under the influence of current, it is necessary, first of all, to take measures to release him from contact with the conductor.

The assisting person must ensure his own safety, remembering that the injured person is in such cases a conductor of the current and touching it is also dangerous, as well as to the current source. If you can not quickly turn off the current (turn off the switch or switch, unscrew the plugs), you must cut the wire with a tool (ax) with a non-conducting current with a dry wooden handle or nippers with protective insulation on the handle, standing on a dry board, a bag of dry clothes, etc.

If this is not feasible, the victim must be dragged or raised from the floor using a dry nonmetallic object (stick, board, rope, etc.) or by hands wrapped in a non-conducting cloth, without touching the exposed parts of the body.

If the end of the broken wire has fallen on the victim, it is necessary to throw him or drag the victim from the conductor, acting in the same way.

First aid

If the victim is in an unconscious state, but he has breath and pulse, it is necessary to bring him to life: give smell ammonia, pat on the cheeks, sprinkle with water.

If the victim does not breathe or breathes convulsively, it is necessary immediately to proceed to artificial breathing "mouth to nose" or "mouth to mouth" and indirect heart massage in the absence of a pulse. At the same time, call on other people who should help and call an ambulance.

Before starting the artificial respiration procedure, one must lay the victim on his back so that his airways are free to pass through the air. For this, his head is thrown back as much as possible. Putting one hand under the neck, the other pressed on the crown. As a result, the root of the tongue is moved away from the posterior wall of the larynx and the patency of the airways is restored.

With compressed jaws, the lower jaw must be advanced and pressing the chin open the mouth, then clean the oral cavity of saliva or vomit from the napkin and proceed to artificial respiration: put the napkin (napkin) on the exposed mouth of the victim, clamp his nose , Take a deep breath, press his lips tightly against the victim's lips, creating a tightness, forcefully blowing air into his mouth. It is necessary to blow in such a portion of air that it each time causes the fullest possible expansion of the lungs, which is detected by the movement of the chest. Small portions of air will not give any effect. Air is blown rhythmically every 5 to 6 seconds, which corresponds to 10-12 times per minute until the recovery of natural breathing.

Do not stop the recovery before the arrival of the Emergency Service if the victim's breathing does not appear. It is known that revival is possible even after 3-4 hours of artificial respiration.

With a sudden cessation of cardiac activity, which is characterized by lack of pulse, palpitation, pupillary reactions to light (pupils dilated), immediately proceed to an indirect massage of the heart: the victim is laid on his back, he should lie on a hard, hard surface. Get up on the left side of him and put their palms one on top of the lower third of the sternum. Energetic rhythmic thrusts 50-60 times per minute pressed on the sternum, after each push, letting go of your hands to allow the chest to break. The anterior wall of the chest should be displaced to a depth of at least 3-4 cm.

If the victim is missing both breathing and pulse, indirect heart massage is performed in combination with artificial respiration. In this case, the victim must be assisted by two or three people. The first produces indirect cardiac massage, the second - artificial mouth-to-mouth breathing, and the third maintains the head of the affected person, being to his right, and one should be ready to change one of the assistants, so that artificial respiration and indirect cardiac massage are performed continuously during The right time. During the injection of air, you can not press on the chest. These activities are carried out alternately: 4-5 pressure on the chest (exhale), then one blowing air into the lungs (inhaling).

Artificial respiration in combination with indirect heart massage is the simplest way to resuscitate (revive) a person who is in a state of clinical death. When performing artificial respiration and indirect heart massage to elderly people, it should be remembered that bones at this age are more fragile, so the movements should be sparing. To small children indirect massage make by pressing in the field of a breast bone not palms, and a finger.

After the victim regains consciousness, he should be left in a lying position on a soft litter, protect from cooling, cover with a blanket, provide maximum peace, sufficient air access, if possible give strong tea, some wine or cognac. In the presence of burns - apply aseptic bandages.

During a thunderstorm

Need extra care during a thunderstorm. In houses where there are no lightning conductors (one-story, in rural areas), it is necessary to turn off sensitive electronic devices, close windows, doors, pipes in stoves, stop talking on the phone.

The cases of entering the room through a window of ball lightning are described, which can explode and even destroy the building. During a thunderstorm, you can not be in an open area - in the field, on the bank of the river, the sea. In the forest, one should not hide under a lonely tree or towering above other trees, which can become the center of an electric crater, around which current flows on the ground, because through such a tree there is often a lightning bolt. The most dangerous oak, poplar, pine. Rarely lightning strikes a birch or maple, almost never in the bush.

It is not safe to be on high ground near high masts, pillars, etc .; Do not stand on damp stumps that are grounded through the roots. Once in the open area, it is recommended to choose a low place (pit, trench).

Electricity and children

The boy shoved two fingers into the socket. All that remained was collected in a newspaper.

Read this horror story to your children. Tell them about the danger that electricity presents. Children of preschool and primary school age should be prohibited from using electrical appliances. Carefully ensure that the apartment does not have open live parts (for example, a cartridge without a lamp).

The boy was playing in a transformer box. Now there are forget-me-nots on the grave.

And read this horror story for children. Explain to them that the current strikes and at a distance. Strictly forbid to approach the ragged wire, arrange dangerous games under power lines: to launch kites, to throw a wire. In no case can it penetrate into transformer substations.