The men carried the stairs; they were electrocuted 10,000 times. Signs and consequences of electric shock. Degrees of electric shock

Electrical injuries happen quite often in everyday life and at work, because people are surrounded by a large number of devices. To avoid electric shock, you need to know as much as possible what electrical injury is, why it occurs, and what safety rules exist when working with various devices.

Electrical injury concept

Electrical injury is damage to organs and body systems caused by electric current. The first death from electric shock was recorded in Lyon, France, where a carpenter died after being struck by an alternating current generator. According to statistics, in modern Russia more than 30 thousand people die annually from such injuries. No one is immune from this danger, because electricity surrounds people everywhere. Most often, young men suffer from electric shock.

The human body is the best conductor of electrical energy. A person receives an electric shock when interacting with live parts of faulty equipment or as a result of failure to follow safety precautions. An electric shock of more than 1 mA is felt as painful.

You can get hurt without touching live elements, for example, due to a current leak or breakdown of the air gap when an electric arc is formed.

The severity of the injuries received depends on the nature of the current, the power of the discharge, the time of exposure, the place of contact, and the individual characteristics of the victim (health, age, body humidity).

Electric shock is one of the most dangerous injuries, as it can often result in death. Electrical injury occurs in many situations:

Types of electric shock

The classification of electric shock is based on the nature and degree of its impact on the human body. Depending on this they distinguish:

Main symptoms

If a person was electrocuted in front of loved ones or colleagues, then there can be no doubt about the diagnosis. The victim must be immediately sent to a medical facility. If the accident occurred when the wounded person was alone, then determine whether there was an electric shock, possible based on the following criteria:

Particular attention should be paid to affected children. Signs of an electric shock include heavy breathing, convulsions, extreme paleness, lethargy, or hyperactivity.

Help for the victim

Witnesses to the incident must first move the victim to a safe distance from the energy source. If a person grabs a bare wire and his hands cramp, then it is necessary to break the electrical circuit. First of all, you need to take care of the safety of those who came to help. Be sure to wear rubber gloves and boots, and also turn off the switch. The wire can be pulled to the side using a wooden stick. If the victim's clothes are wet, do not touch them with bare hands.

Having dragged a person to a safe place, you need to understand what condition he is in: whether the pulse is palpable, whether the heart is working.

If the victim is conscious, he is asked for his name, age and other data to understand that he has not lost his memory. A patient who has received an electrical injury must be taken to the hospital as soon as possible. The duration of recovery after an accident depends on the severity of the injury and on how correctly and quickly resuscitation measures were carried out.

Consequences of injury

In case of severe electric shock, death cannot be ruled out. Survivors of such trauma are usually in a coma. The victim is diagnosed with unstable functioning of the heart and respiratory system, convulsions, mechanical damage, hypovolemic shock, and renal failure.

The consequences of electric shock can affect the functioning of almost any organ in the human body. Electrical trauma provokes malfunctions of the heart and blood vessels, aggravates chronic diseases (for example, stomach and duodenal ulcers), causes pulmonary edema, loss of vision and hearing. When the heart muscle contracts, a heart attack cannot be ruled out.

No one can prevent malfunctions in the operation of electrical appliances. But to avoid serious injury, you should follow safety rules. In this case, the risk is significantly reduced.

Electrical injury– damage to organs and body systems under the influence of electric current.

  • The first mention of death from electric current was registered in 1879 in France, Lyon, a carpenter died from an alternating current generator.
  • In developed countries, the incidence of electric shock is on average about 2-3 cases per hundred thousand population.
  • Most often, young people of working age suffer from electric shock.
  • The mortality rate for men from electrical injuries is 4 times higher than for women.

The effect of electric current on the human body

Electric current has thermal, electrochemical and biological effects on humans.
  • Thermal impact: Electrical energy, encountering resistance from body tissues, turns into thermal energy and causes electrical burns. Mostly, burns occur at the point of entry and exit of current, that is, in places of greatest resistance. As a result, the so-called current marks or signs. Thermal energy, converted from electrical energy, destroys and changes tissue along its path.
  • Electrochemical effect:“gluing”, thickening of blood cells (platelets and leukocytes), movement of ions, change in protein charges, formation of steam and gas, giving tissues a cellular appearance, etc.
  • Biological action: disruption of the nervous system, disruption of cardiac conduction, contraction of the skeletal muscles of the heart, etc.

What determines the severity and nature of electrical injury?

Factors of electric shock:
  1. Type, strength and voltage

  • Alternating current is more dangerous than direct current. At the same time, low-frequency currents (about 50-60 Hz) are more dangerous than high-frequency ones. The frequency of the current used in everyday life is 60 Hz. As the frequency increases, the current flows across the surface of the skin, causing burns, but not death.
  • The most significant is the strength and voltage of the electric current.
The body's response to the passage of alternating current
Current strength How does the victim feel?
0.9-1.2 mA The current is barely noticeable
1.2-1.6 mA Feeling of "goosebumps" or tingling
1.6-2.8 mA Feeling of heaviness in the wrist
2.8-4.5 mA Stiffness in the forearm
4.5-5.0 mA Convulsive contraction of the forearm
5.0-7.0 mA Convulsive contraction of the shoulder muscles
15.0-20 mA It's impossible to take your hand off the wire
20-40 mA Very painful muscle cramps
50-100 mA Heart failure
More than 200 mA Very deep burns
  • High voltage current (over 1000 volts) causes more severe damage. High voltage electric shock can occur even when one step away from the current source (“voltaic arc”). As a rule, deaths occur as a result of high-voltage injuries. Low-voltage electric shocks are mostly common in households, and fortunately, the percentage of deaths from low-voltage electric shocks is lower than from high-voltage injuries.
  1. The path of current through the body

  • The path that current takes through the body is called a current loop. The most dangerous is a full loop (2 arms - 2 legs), in which the current passes through the heart, causing disruptions in its functioning until it stops completely. The following loops are also considered dangerous: hand-head, hand-hand.
  1. Current duration

  • The longer the contact with the current source, the more pronounced the damage and the higher the likelihood of death. When exposed to high voltage current, due to a sharp muscle contraction, the victim can be immediately thrown away from the current source. At lower voltages, muscle spasm may cause prolonged hand gripping of the conductor. As the time of exposure to current increases, the skin resistance decreases, so the victim’s contact with the current source should be stopped as soon as possible.
  1. Environmental factors
The risk of electric shock increases in damp and damp rooms (bathrooms, bathhouses, dugouts, etc.).
  1. The outcome of electrical trauma also largely depends on age and body condition at the moment of defeat
  • The severity of the lesion increases: childhood and old age, fatigue, exhaustion, chronic diseases, alcohol intoxication.

Degrees of electric shock


Electric Shock Hazard or consequences of electric shock

System Consequences
Nervous system
  • Possible: loss of consciousness of varying duration and degree, loss of memory about the events that occurred (retrograde amnesia), convulsions.
  • In mild cases, the following are possible: weakness, flickering in the eyes, weakness, dizziness, headache.
  • Sometimes nerve damage occurs, which leads to impaired motor activity in the limbs, impaired sensitivity and tissue nutrition. There may be a violation of thermoregulation, the disappearance of physiological and the appearance of pathological reflexes.
  • The passage of electric current through the brain leads to loss of consciousness and seizures. In some cases, the passage of current through the brain can cause breathing to stop, which often causes death due to electric shock.
  • When exposed to high voltage current, the body can develop a deep disorder of the central nervous system with inhibition of the centers responsible for breathing and cardiovascular activity, leading to “imaginary death”, the so-called “electrical lethargy”. This is manifested by invisible respiratory and cardiac activity. If resuscitation efforts in such cases are started on time, in most cases they are successful.
The cardiovascular system
  • Cardiac dysfunction in most cases is functional in nature. Disturbances manifest themselves in the form of various heart rhythm disturbances (sinus arrhythmia, an increase in the number of heart contractions - tachycardia, a decrease in the number of heart contractions - bradycardia, heart blockades, extraordinary heart contractions - extrasystole;).
  • The passage of current through the heart can disrupt its ability to contract as a single unit, causing the phenomenon of fibrillation, in which the cardiac muscle fibers contract separately and the heart loses its ability to pump blood, which amounts to cardiac arrest.
  • In some cases, the electric current can damage the wall of blood vessels, leading to bleeding.
Respiratory system
  • The passage of an electric current through the respiratory center located in the central nervous system can cause inhibition or complete cessation of respiratory activity. If injured by high voltage current, bruises and ruptures of the lungs are possible.
Sense organs

  • Tinnitus, hearing loss, tactile disorder. Possible ruptures of the eardrums, injuries to the middle ear followed by deafness (if exposed to high voltage current). When exposed to bright light, damage to the visual apparatus may occur in the form of keratitis, choroiditis, cataracts.
Striated and smooth muscles

  • The passage of current through muscle fibers leads to their spasm, which can manifest itself as cramps. Significant contraction of skeletal muscles by electric current can lead to fractures of the spine and long bones.
  • Spasm of the muscular layer of blood vessels can lead to increased blood pressure or the development of myocardial infarction due to spasm of the coronary vessels of the heart.
Causes of death:
  • The main causes of death in electrical accidents are cardiac arrest and respiratory arrest as a result of damage to the respiratory center.
Long-term complications:
  • The effect of electric current can cause long-term complications. Such complications include: damage to the central and peripheral nervous system (inflammation of the nerves - neuritis, trophic ulcers, encephalopathy), the cardiovascular system (disturbances in heart rhythm and conduction of nerve impulses, pathological changes in the heart muscle), the appearance of cataracts, hearing impairment, etc.
  • Electrical burns can heal with the development of deformities and contractures of the musculoskeletal system.
  • Repeated exposure to electric current can lead to early arteriosclerosis, obliterating endarteritis and persistent autonomic changes.

Electric shock sign or electrotag

Electric tag– areas of tissue necrosis at the points of entry and exit of electric current. They arise due to the transition of electrical energy into thermal energy.
Form Color Characteristic signs Photo
Round or oval, but can also be linear. Often there is a ridge-like elevation along the edges of the damaged skin, while the middle of the mark appears slightly sunken. Sometimes the top layer of skin may peel away in the form of blisters, but without fluid inside, unlike thermal burns. Usually lighter than surrounding tissue - pale yellow or grayish white. The marks are completely painless due to damage to the nerve endings. Deposition of conductor metal particles on the skin (copper - blue-green, iron-brown, etc.). When exposed to a low voltage current, metal particles are located on the surface of the skin, and when exposed to a high voltage current, they spread deep into the skin. The hair in the area of ​​the marks is twisted into a spiral, maintaining its structure.
Electrical burns are not always limited to marks on the skin. Quite often, damage to deeper tissues occurs: muscles, tendons, bones. Sometimes the lesions are located under apparently healthy skin.

Help with electric shock

The consequences of electric shock largely depend on the provision of timely assistance.

Should I call an ambulance?


There are cases of sudden death a few hours after electric shock. Based on this, any victim of an electric shock must be taken to a specialized hospital, where, if necessary, emergency assistance can be provided.

Steps to help with electric shock

  1. Stop the impact of the current on the victim, following the established rules. Open the electrical circuit using a circuit breaker or switch, or unplug the plug from the outlet. Remove the current source from the victim using insulating objects (wooden stick, chair, clothing, rope, rubber gloves, dry towel, etc.). You should approach the victim wearing rubber or leather shoes on a dry surface or placing a rubber mat or dry boards under your feet.
In the case of a current source above 1000 volts, special safety measures must be taken to save the victim. To do this, you need to work in rubber shoes, rubber gloves, and use insulating pliers for the appropriate voltage.
If necessary, drag the victim away from the zone of action of the “step voltage” (at a distance of up to 10 m), holding him by a belt or dry clothing, without touching open parts of the body.
  1. Determine the presence of consciousness
  • Take them by the shoulders, shake them (do not do this if you suspect a spinal injury), and ask loudly: What’s wrong with you? Do you need help?
  1. Assess the state of cardiac and respiratory activity. And, if necessary, carry out resuscitation measures according to the ABC algorithm (closed cardiac massage, artificial ventilation (mouth-to-mouth breathing)).



ABC algorithm What to do? How to do?
A

Clear the airways It is necessary to perform a number of techniques to move the root of the tongue away from the back wall and thus remove the obstacle to the air flow.
  • The palm of one hand is placed on the forehead, with 2 fingers of the other hand the chin is raised, pushing the lower jaw forward and upward, while throwing the head back. (if a spinal injury is suspected, do not tilt the head back)
IN
Check if there is breathing Lean towards the victim’s chest and determine whether there is breathing movement in the chest. If it is visually difficult to determine whether there is breathing or not. You can bring a mirror to your mouth or nose, which will fog up if there is breathing, or you can bring a thin thread, which will deflect if there is breathing.
WITH
Determine if pulse The pulse is determined on the carotid artery, with the fingers bent at the phalanges.
At the present stage of medicine, it is recommended to begin resuscitation actions from point C - indirect cardiac massage, then A - release of the airways and B - artificial respiration.
If breathing and pulse are not detected, you need to start resuscitation measures:
  1. Indirect cardiac massage, 100 compressions per minute on the chest (with an amplitude for adults of 5-6 cm and with full expansion of the chest after each compression). To carry out manipulations, the patient must lie on a flat, hard surface. The point of placement of the hands during the massage should be located on the chest between the nipples, the shoulders should be directly above the palms, and the elbows should be fully straightened.
  2. Breathing mouth to mouth 2 breaths every 30 chest compressions.
If it is impossible to perform mouth-to-mouth breathing, only indirect cardiac massage can be performed. Resuscitation efforts should continue until the ambulance arrives. The optimal time to start resuscitation is 2-3 minutes after cardiac arrest. The practical limit of resuscitation is 30 minutes, with the exception of victims in cold temperatures. The effectiveness of resuscitation actions is assessed by the color of the victim’s skin (pinkness of the face, disappearance of cyanosis).


Drug treatment. If measures are unsuccessful within 2-3 minutes, 1 ml of 0.1% adrenaline is administered (intravenously, intramuscularly or intracardially), a solution of calcium chloride 10% - 10 ml, a solution of strophanthin 0.05% - 1 ml diluted in 20 ml of a 40% solution glucose.
If there is breathing, the victim must be placed in a stable lateral position and wait for the ambulance to arrive.


4. Dry gauze or contour bandages should be applied to the burned surfaces. The application of ointment dressings is contraindicated.

5. If the victim is conscious, before the ambulance arrives, if necessary, you can give painkillers (analgin, ibuprofen, etc.) and/or a sedative (tincture of valerian, persen, ankylosing spondylitis, etc.).

6. The victim should be transported only in a lying position and covered warmly.

Treatment in hospital

  • All victims with symptoms of shock are hospitalized in the intensive care unit.
  • Victims without signs of electrical or burn shock with limited electrical burns are hospitalized in surgical wards. According to indications, burn wounds are cleaned, bandaged, and medicated (cardiac and antiarrhythmic drugs, vitamins, etc.). If necessary, complex surgical interventions are performed to restore the integrity and functional capacity of damaged tissues and organs.
  • Victims without local lesions, even in satisfactory condition, require hospitalization in the therapeutic department for further observation and examination. Since there are known cases of delayed complications, both from the cardiovascular system (cardiac arrest, cardiac arrhythmia, etc.), and from other systems (nervous, respiratory, etc.).
  • People who have suffered an electrical injury often require long-term rehabilitation. Since the effect of electric current can cause long-term complications. Such complications include: damage to the central and peripheral nervous system (inflammation of the nerves - neuritis, trophic ulcers, encephalopathy), the cardiovascular system (disturbances in heart rhythm and conduction of nerve impulses, pathological changes in the heart muscle), the appearance of cataracts, hearing impairment, as well as functions of other organs and systems.

Protection against electric shock


The best protection against electric shock is to keep your head on your shoulders. It is necessary to clearly know all the requirements and safety rules when working with electric current, use the necessary personal protective equipment and be extremely careful when performing any work with electrical installations.

Means of protection:

  • Insulating pads and supports;
  • Dielectric carpets, gloves, galoshes, caps;
  • Portable grounding;
  • Tools with insulated handles;
  • Use of screens, partitions, chambers for protection against electric current;
  • Use of special protective clothing (type Ep1-4);
  • Reduce the time spent in the danger zone;
  • Safety posters and signs.
Safety requirements
  • You should only approach live parts at a distance equal to the length of the insulating part of the electrical protective equipment.
  • It is mandatory to use an individual shielding set of clothing when working in open switchgear with voltages of 330 kV and above.
  • In electrical installations with voltages above 1000V, using a voltage indicator requires the use of dielectric gloves when working in electrical devices above 1000V.
  • When a thunderstorm is approaching, all work on switchgear must be stopped.

10,000 VOLT INSTEAD OF BAITED

Every year in the emergency department of the Burn Center of the Research Institute of Emergency Medicine named after. N.V. Sklifosovsky ends up with up to three thousand people. The sad palm is occupied by patients after “communication” with fire. In second place are those who were scalded with boiling water, in third place are chemical burns. And only 5% of the total number are people with electric shock injuries. The head of the Burn Center, Professor Sergei SMIRNOV, talks about what is behind this figure in a conversation with a correspondent:

This FIGURE is not constant. In winter, the number of electrocuted people is always smaller, but with the onset of summer, a real disaster begins: the skin sweats, thunderstorms thunder, electricians are too lazy to put on protective suits due to the heat, and in addition, the summer season opens, when everyone is “his own electrician.”

There is a common belief that electricians develop a special immunity, and electricity is not dangerous for them.

This is true for low voltage, but as for high voltage, it is electricians who make up the vast majority of our severe patients. Please, a case from practice. The mechanic stood on a three-meter stand, repairing the transformer. The stand began to shake, and the installer, trying to maintain his balance, grabbed the 6,000-volt wire with his hand. Another, squatting, connected a 350 VAC wire and closed the circuit on himself.

What about the safety rules?

Our statistics say that 75% of electrical injuries occur at work due to non-compliance with safety regulations. This includes trolleybus drivers who, with their bare hands, straighten rods that have come off wires (and this is 550 V), and workers who drag energized transformers. There are many cases at a construction site when the boom of a construction crane accidentally touches electrical wires: the current spreads through all metal parts of the crane and hits workers who are removing or hanging the load. Almost none of them return to construction after this: some develop a fear of electricity, while others suffer greatly from the vestibular apparatus after the defeat. Many become disabled.

Let's move away from production. The remaining 25% probably consists of everyday episodes.

Of course, there are accidents from which no one is immune. At night, two women were walking along the road and stepped into a puddle in which lay the end of a broken wire. The current passed through the lower loop - it entered through one leg and exited through the other. The same thing can happen if you walk through a wet field during a thunderstorm.

Long-term observations show that the lower leg-to-leg loop occurs the least often and is considered the least dangerous. Most often it goes to the hands (top loop). And the most dangerous is considered to be a full loop (both arms, both legs), since in this case the current necessarily passes through the brain and heart.

Teenagers riding on the roofs of electric trains add to the sad list of victims. They usually sit on a motor carriage and consider themselves safe because they do not touch the wires. But the head is so close to the high-voltage voltage (3000 V) that an electric arc occurs: electrons from the wire jump to a nearby conductor - to the head.

You can also suffer from an arc during a thunderstorm. A lightning strike and a person almost immediately loses consciousness. Some, upon coming to their senses, feel dizzy, weak, and drowsy. With such symptoms, few people think of seeing a doctor. Meanwhile, the insidiousness of electrical trauma lies in the fact that it does not have any special signs and upon external examination it does not manifest itself in any way; but anyone who has been electrocuted needs immediate consultation with a specialist.

What is the difference between trauma and burn?

When they say that a person was killed by an electric current of five or ten thousand volts, this means that death occurred from trauma. Electrical trauma damages the entire body. Example: a person grabs high-voltage wires with both hands, causing damage to the heart, nervous system and skin. Electrical trauma in its pure form is dealt with by cardiologists. But trauma and burns most often occur together.

An electric burn is the result of a local effect of current on tissue, that is, it affects only part of the body. Marks remain at the current entry and exit points. If the marks are located close (for example, a person touches the wire with his shoulder and forearm), then an electrical burn occurs on the skin, tissue, muscles, and bones.

Burns are treated in the surgical department. As a surgeon, I can say that very often it is necessary to perform mutilation operations, that is, amputation of limbs or their segments.

As far as I know, recently the number of victims of electrical injuries has been increasing. What is this connected with?

The explanation lies in the economic field. In the last ten years, the population has become so impoverished that people are climbing into transformer boxes and power lines to extract non-ferrous metals and high-voltage wires and sell them. And this kind of “business” is not done by stupid teenagers, but by fully grown, mature people.

In recent years, “electric poachers” have been increasingly arriving at our center. For fishing, they choose a lake over which a power line passes. They take their wire, throw one end onto the line, and the other into the water. Of course, all living things in the water die immediately. But there are times when a naughty wire, instead of falling into the water, overtakes the poacher himself.

Are there cases when electrical injuries go away without consequences?

There are. Many patients come to us with minor injuries, without complaints and without any “findings” in the heart or other organs.

But if we are talking about serious cases, then even after several years, persistent disorders of the nervous system remain. And in addition, after an electric shock, the pain of a stomach ulcer intensifies, radiculitis worsens, and long-healed fractures begin to hurt. But the current not only intensifies those diseases that existed before, it can become a trigger for epilepsy and schizophrenia. Provided that before that they were in a hidden state.

First aid

It would be GOOD, of course, if there was a doctor near the victim at the time of the electric shock. But...

if you are able to move after an electric shock, immediately go to the nearest hospital or medical center;

if someone is working with electrical wiring in your presence, try not to leave him unattended: in the moment of electric shock, he will not be able to call for help or simply scream to attract attention;

a person exposed to voltage below 380 volts literally sticks to the current source and is unable to free himself. This can happen for two reasons. First: out of confusion, he cannot figure out what he is doing. Second: contact with electricity can cause him to lose consciousness. Those around you should immediately open the circuit - unplug the cord from the outlet or press the switch. But if this is impossible, it is necessary to knock the wire out of the person’s hands with a stick, stool or other non-conductive object, or - with the same stool - push him away from the wire. You can simply push with your foot - provided that the shoes do not conduct current;

practice shows that after contact with current a person is most often unconscious. Therefore, the first thing the victim needs is mouth-to-mouth artificial respiration. To do this, you need to put it down, throw back your head and push your lower jaw forward. Pinch your nose, put a handkerchief on your mouth and begin to inhale air through it - 3-4 breaths, and press on your chest, and so on until a pulse appears. It is also advisable to check his pupils: as long as they remain narrow, there is hope of bringing the person back to life.

If you notice an error, please highlight it with the mouse and press Ctrl+Enter 14.3.2009 00:05
Photo: from the site sob.ru

A seven-year-old resident of the Chinese province of Sichuan was born in a shirt - a bare high-voltage wire fell on the boy, but the child miraculously survived, Vesti.Ru reports.

A little boy named He Haoyang was playing under a high-voltage power line. Suddenly one of the wires broke and fell right on him. After a powerful electric shock with a voltage of 10 thousand volts, the boy stood on his feet and even ran several meters away from the place where the wire fell.

The victim was quickly taken to the hospital. The surprise of the doctors knew no bounds. The child only received burns on his hands! Doctors did not find any damage to the brain or internal organs that is usual in such cases.

It remains a mystery how the boy managed to survive. After all, for several meters in the area where the wire fell, all the earth was scorched.


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Comments

(total comments: 5)

Wrote: My heart hurts.
Electric shock in the transformer booth of 10,000 volts. There was a small booth on 2 floors, 5m long and 3m wide, the first floor was de-energized and the second floor was energized. We decided to remove the copper switches... There were 2 transformers, on the first floor they also removed everything, began to go up to the second floor, I decided to scratch some plate with a wrench, the key melted and a fragment flew into pieces, hit me in the chest, I touched everything, sparks crackling in my eyes, tinnitus, First he fell on his knees, then on his back, began to raise his arm, never rose, and passed out for about 7 minutes. When I recovered, my head was spinning and everything hurt. Then I was in the hospital for 2 weeks....

Posted by: Larisa
+ at the city substation they were painting a transformer, there was an order that it was turned off, but due to the negligence of the dispatchers it turned on. I was shocked by 10 thousand volts, my health is poor with a great deterioration in the heart area.


Posted by: Laguts
When I was about ten years old, in a transformer substation I touched the incoming cable with my hand, as it turned out ten thousand volts passed through it, all of them passed through me, I also remained standing, there were wounds on my hand with charred edges, not too significant. I returned home on my own and felt fine, although I was very scared. Until then, I was not afraid to pick up a 220 wire. I think it all depends on the individual resistance of the body, etc. some other factors, the moisture content of the soil, shoes, the presence of wounds on the surface of the body, the level of dry skin are of considerable importance.

Posted by: KASS
According to friends who understand electricity, yesterday I received an electric shock of approximately 10,000 volts (another 63A is indicated at the substation located not far from this place). I hooked an 8m fishing rod onto the wires at the top, I got an electric shock, got a burn on my right arm and left leg, it knocked me off my feet, I felt like I was being twisted all over, but I didn’t lose consciousness. I feel fine, but my muscles hurt a lot - from my neck to my chest. Today I checked with a cardiologist - everything is COMPLETELY fine! Only the muscles of the arms, neck and chest hurt a lot! So it’s not just Chinese boys who are lucky!

Vasily Strakha from Luknovo, Koropsky district, ended up in the ATO zone when he was only 20. He is the youngest mobilized in the entire region. Vasya celebrated his 21st birthday in a trench in the Donetsk region. And a month later, in May last year, he almost died - a current discharge of 10,000 volts passed through his body.

He was demobilized last September. He talks about his experiences during the war with a little embarrassment.

“I really wanted to join the army, so when the summons came for military service (and then to the ATO zone), there was no thought about “sloping off,” says Vasily. — I did my military service first in Desna, and then in Crimea. It coincided that as soon as I served and returned home, the occupation of the peninsula began. I stayed at home for six months, worked as a tractor driver, and then I was mobilized to the ATO zone.

He ended up in the 25th Airborne Brigade and was a machine gunner in a reconnaissance airborne company. A year ago, in January, we stood near Avdeevka, Donetsk region. I'll be honest: it was difficult. They fired at us harshly - from mortars, "grads"... I remember the first shelling most of all, because then I was very scared, if it weren't for the experienced guys, I don't know how I would have survived. I experienced the subsequent shelling more calmly and did not panic so much.

I got used to it and acted automatically. Over time, some kind of intuition even appeared, which more than once saved the lives of me and my brothers-in-arms. One day we were chatting with the guys, and my heart became so anxious! I say: “Guys, let’s get out of here. Let's move to another place." And just as we crossed over, a shell fell and exploded where we were! Can you imagine?!

The guys then joked that I was a seer. And once, during a mortar attack, I and another soldier were hiding in a trench. I did not sit next to him, but opposite him. And right before my eyes, a shrapnel hit him and pierced his bulletproof vest. I couldn’t do anything, he died in my arms... Experiencing this is the most difficult thing.

After Avdeevka, I served near Konstantinovka, Donetsk region. One day, my comrades and I were observing the area from our checkpoint. We see: some car is driving not far from the railway track. My partner Zhenya and I went on reconnaissance to find out what kind of car it was and what it was doing there. As soon as they began to approach, the car drove away, leaving two men behind.

They saw us and began to run away. We are behind them. While running along the path, I did not notice the broken high-voltage wire and hooked it with a machine gun. I remember being thrown up and falling a few meters from that place. All he had time to do was shout: “Zhenya, save me!” And he passed out.

Zhenya ran up and began to give me artificial respiration and cardiac massage. I woke up, but I couldn’t move - it felt like my whole body was numb. My right leg hurt very badly. We saw a large round wound a little above the foot. Zhenya gave me some water to drink and tried to get me to my feet, but I couldn’t walk. Then he carried me on his shoulders, but on the road to the checkpoint there was a small hill that he did not have the strength to cross. Gathering my will into a fist, I began to help him, pushing a little with my feet. We crossed a hill and a forest plantation, and then our guys came running to help. I was taken to the hospital in Konstantinovka.

The doctors said that it was a miracle that I survived because that railroad had a high-voltage line with a voltage of 10,000 volts! The current passed through the whole body and exited through the leg. I experienced clinical death and received a third degree concussion. And one elderly nurse said: “You’re lucky, boy, that you have a cross and a church ribbon on your hand.” My mother gave me a cross and a ribbon. Maybe they really saved me. I decided to tell my mother about what happened to me only the next day, when I was transported to Dimitrov, Donetsk region.

“He called and said: “Mom, what are you doing?” “I answered that I would field corn,” recalls Natalya Alexandrovna. - Vasya then: “I was electrocuted. My heart stopped." As soon as I heard it, I sat down with a hoe in my hand in the field. I don’t know how long I sat there. I cried and couldn't stop. When she calmed down, she said: “So it’s too early for you to die, son.”

In Dimitrov, Vasily’s burned skin was cut out and the wound was bandaged. A few days later he was transferred to the Dnepropetrovsk hospital, where he was given a referral for treatment to Kyiv. At the Kiev military hospital he underwent skin graft surgery. A large scar on his leg reminds him of an electric shock.

“The first weeks after the operation I walked on crutches. My leg hurt so much, even painkillers didn’t help,” says Vasily. “After looking at guys like me, but without legs and arms, I realized that I was lucky. Although I had to undergo treatment almost all summer, and then also undergo rehabilitation in Irpen, Kyiv region.

— We are very proud of Vasya. He is so young, and already has a certificate “For conscientious performance of military duty,” a medal “War Veteran” and a badge “For exemplary military service.”

His 5-year-old sister Dasha is especially proud of Vasya. While he was in the east, she often said: “Vasya is protecting me,” and when he returned home, she did not leave his side. She adores her older brother,” Natalya Alexandrovna smiles. - I pray for the children every day. Vasya has been through so much that he still cannot sleep peacefully.

Almost every night he pushes the walls, all his hands are knocked down. And sometimes he jumps up in the middle of the night and moves furniture - barricading himself. We hope this will pass with time...

“I have already returned to my normal life,” adds Vasily. — I work as a tractor driver at a local agricultural enterprise. Spring is coming, there will be a lot of work. I’m only glad of this - when I’m busy, I forget about the headache and everything that I had to go through.