The herald and news. [volume] (Newberry S.C.) 1903-1937, 1922-10-03
SAFETY IN STORM
"Skyscraper" Good Place to Be
When Lightning Flashes.
Steel Frame Conducts Electric Fluid
Harnniessly to Earth-Sor,e Places
That Are Especially Dangerous.

'Hat HiS especially Ian H9S. odS.
Here's good news for sky.craper
folk. The safest place in thunder
storm is steel frame building That
is, it's the safest place accessible to
most of us. There might be slight
margin in favor of an underground
cave or a compartment completely en-
veloped in metal network. But mod
ern Office building. hotel or department
store comes pretty near making its
occupants lightning proof.
Not that lightning never strikes such
building. Indeed, it often skaters
some wooden eXcrescence OMIT. like g
llagpole, and there have been thunder
storms in New York which have lit
tered downtown streets with such
wreckage.
But the modern buildings themselves
are such good conductors that when
they are struck the people inside them
never know it. Through their steel
skeletons the electric fluid speeds
harmlessly on it's shortest possible
path to the earth.
More, the skyscraper actually plays
benvfcent part in thunderstorm,
says DR.. Charles P. Steinmetz, chief
consulting engineer Of the General
Electric company, since they tend to
relieve by silent discharges" the ten
sion existing at such times between
earth and sky.
If you are lightning shy, DR.. Stein
metz conclusions will encourage you.
At the> same time he utters few
words of warning. While the sporting
odds, based on lightning fatality sta
tistics, are about 10000 to l against
any particular person being killed by
lightning, it's just as well to notice
where you're standing while thur
derstorm is raging.
1t might not be healthy, for instance,
to take up your station in direct line
between two good-siZed metal objects,
such as steam radiator and an iron
sink, or between either of them and
rain spout running up the side Of the
house. That would be reckless invi-
ration to some fash of lightning, either
direct Or indirect, to do its worst TO
you. For lightning prefers metal con-
ductors on it's journey to the ground
and would rather leap from one me-
tallic body to another than take a
direct course through nonconducting
mediums
"a place Of special DANGER" says
Steinmetz. sis directly beneath hang
ing lamp or globe suspended from the
ceiling by chain. Lightning may fol-
low the chain to it's end and then
jump off. The place where q wire
clothesline enters house may also be
a danger spot, although I think this
has been oyeremphasized.
Golf fans will be .cheered to learn
that the metal pieces on their clubs are
too insignificant to attract the majestic
attentions Of a lightning stroke. Golf
ers caught IN thunderstorm have
been known to fall in q panic and
throw away their clubs, but their fears
are pronounced groundlesS.
The behavior of lightning under va.
rious conditions has been studied SYM
pathetieally by sSteinmetz, VINO was
dubbed lightning tanner" when he sue
ceeded in producing artificial lightning
in his laboratory.
"If you glory in a thunderstorm as
do, you viii want to stand at window
or on The front, porch and watch it"
he said. And there you will be just
about as safe as anywhere else. For
of all ~the lightning flashes generated
by vivid summer storm, less than
per cent strike the earth. The rest are
confined to the sky that breeds them.
Your chances of being bitten by mad
dog are probably greater than the
chance that you will be struck dead by
lightning. Only about 500 persons are
killed by lightning in this country
every year.
As for the human rabbits who seek
Insulation in thunderstorm by
rolling themselves in feather beds, the
lightning tanner has nothing but mild
ridicGle for them.
Priority. Of Sailing Vessel.