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NYCHA Now
Lightning
April 2022 Health & Safety 

April Is Spring Safety Awareness Month

Michael Corwin

Plan – Prepare – Prevent

Now that it’s spring, we need to be aware of unpredictable weather patterns. Temperatures can swing back and forth between balmy and frigid. Sunny days may be followed by a week of stormy weather. Sometimes extreme weather changes can occur even within the same day. That’s why the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has declared the month of April as “Spring Safety Awareness Month.”

When severe weather hits unexpectedly, the risk of weather-related deaths and injuries increases, so plan and be prepared. Thunderstorms cause most of the severe spring weather and bring lightning.

To help you stay safe in the springtime, please review the following information from NYCHA’s Environmental Health and Safety Department:

Keep an emergency kit on hand that includes:

  • A battery-operated flashlight
    • Extra batteries
    • A 3-5-day supply of bottled water and nonperishable food
    • Personal hygiene items
    • Blankets or sleeping bags
    • A first aid kit that includes adhesive bandages, antibiotic ointment, sterile gauze pads, scissors, and aspirin
    • An emergency evacuation plan that includes telephone numbers of family, friends, and neighbors; insurance and property information; and medical information for everyone in your household

Lightning Safety Tips

Outdoor Tips

  • Be aware: Check the weather forecast before participating in outdoor activities.
  • Go indoors: Remember the phrase, “When thunder roars, go indoors.” Find a safe, enclosed shelter when you hear thunder. Safe shelters include homes, offices, shopping centers, and hard-top vehicles with the windows rolled up.
  • Seek shelter immediately even if caught out in the open: Act quickly to find adequate shelter. Crouching or getting low to the ground can reduce your chances of being struck but does not remove you from danger.
  • Separate: If you are in a group during a thunderstorm, separate from each other. This will reduce the number of injuries if lightning strikes the ground.
  • Don’t stay in open vehicles, structures, and spaces.
  • Don’t stay near tall structures.

Indoor Tips

  • Avoid water: Do NOT bathe, shower, wash dishes, or have any other contact with water during a thunderstorm because lightning can travel through a building’s plumbing.
  • Avoid electronic equipment: Do NOT use your computers, laptops, game systems, washers, dryers, stoves, or anything connected to an electrical outlet. Lightning can travel through electrical systems, radio and television reception systems, and any metal wires or bars in concrete walls or flooring. Equip your home with whole-house surge protectors to protect your appliances.
  • Avoid corded phones: Corded phones are NOT safe to use during a thunderstorm. Do NOT use them. However, it is safe to use cordless or cellular phones during a storm.
  • Avoid windows, doors, porches, and concrete: Do NOT lie on concrete floors during a thunderstorm. Also, avoid leaning on concrete walls. Lightning can travel through any metal wires or bars in concrete walls or flooring.

For more spring safety tips, please visit the websites of the CDC and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.