[pct-l] FW: lightning

[dsaufley]

An instruction from a NOLS Wilderness Medicine Institute course recommended
the book "Shattered Air, A True Account of Catastrophe and Courage on
Yosemite's Half Dome" by Rob Madgic. Excellent read.

L-Rod

-----Original Message-----
From: pct-l-bounces at backcountry.net [mailto:pct-l-bounces at backcountry.net]
On Behalf Of Gary Wright
Sent: Thursday, March 25, 2010 11:42 AM
To: pct-l at backcountry.net MailingList
Subject: Re: [pct-l] FW: lightning


I'd like to add a few thoughts about lightning based on my Wilderness First
Responder course.

If you are in a group, spread out during a lightning storm (50 feet or
more).  If you stay together, a single strike can affect the entire group
leaving no one able to respond to injuries.

The standard recommendation is to squat/sit down on an insulator (sleeping
pad, backpack) with your arms across your knees, feet together. This allows
the ground current from a nearby strike to pass through your legs and arms
and not through your chest and heart. According to "Wilderness First
Responder" by Buck Tilton, no one has ever been seriously injured by
lightning in this "lightning position".

CPR can be effective on lightning strike victims and should be attempted
immediately. This also implies that members of your party who are injured
but have a pulse and are breathing on their own should be treated *after*
you've attempted CPR on lifeless members. This is somewhat non-intuitive and
goes against a normal triage procedure for mass casualties but is based on
the fact that CPR can be effective in lightning strike situations.

The electric charge of a lightning strike can disrupt the heart or breathing
or both.  Rescue breathing for a lightning strike victim may be needed even
if the victim has a pulse.

Finally, survivors of lightning strikes even if no loss of consciousness
occurred, should be evacuated. Neurological problems can show up days later.

Radar
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