From: jeremiah@yang.earlham.edu (Jeremiah Wilton)
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.urban
Subject: Re: SHOCKING STORIES
Date: 21 Jul 92 13:59:16 GMT
Followup-To: alt.folklore.urban,sci.electronics
X-From: evans@zk3.dec.com (Marc Evans)
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>In article <1992Jul18.175339.10396@newstand.syr.edu>,
>	feliccia@rodan.acs.syr.edu (Nicholas J Feliccia) writes:
>
> Ok. I want to know from the net people. What is the largest voltage shock
> you have ever received (and survived.) I am not talking about rewiring
> a light switch. I am talking about kissing the flyback transformer.

During the summer between my 7th and 8th grade had an encounter with
electricity... Both my father and I were (are) ham radio operators,
and on this one Sunday went to another ham's house to help with raising a new
antenna to the top of his 150' tower. There were a total of about 10 of us
there. My job was to hold a tower guy wire out of the way of the beam as it was
pulled up along the tower.

Well, things went along fairly well, until the beam became somewhat hung on the
wire I was holding. So, I moved left a few 10's of feet, then right a few 20's
of feet hoping to get it clear, but no luck. Finally, at an extreme angle to
where the wire had started, I decided to whip the wire and get it to jump around
the beam so as to free it to be raised the rest of the way.

Unfortunately, at this point, the whipping action (assumed) must have caused
some form of stress on a tension insulator near the top end of the wire. The
result was that it broke and sent the end of the wire flying. This in itself
wasn't *too bad*, until... it came in contact with a 44K volt high tension
line behind me. (at this point, I remember nothing of what happened, but can
provide information as passed along to me by others at the *event*).

As I am told, a loud clap-of-thunder sound rang out, then I appeared to jump
through the air and landed on my head on a rather large rock. I'm told I never
passed out, but I recall nothing of this part of the experience. A hole about
the size of a dime was in the bottom of my sneaker, numerous pin-holes in my
jeans where grass was touching them, and the palms of my hands were totally
burnt.

I was _very_ lucky, as when I was thrown into the air the wire and I seperated
and therefore I wasn't continuing to be zapped. Also, the end of the wire that
I was holding was trailing on the ground the whole time, and therefore I didn't
take the entire hit. None the less, I had 2nd/3rd degree burns on my hands, one
foot, and numerous 1st degree burns along my legs. There was some minimal amount
of nurve damage, but again, I was _very_ lucky (e.g., I'm still here to type in
this message).

The moral of the story; Make sure that all antenna equipment is at least twice
the longest distance of any one piece from electrical lines, especially high
tension lines.

- Marc

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