It is important to understand why and how you can protect yourself from electrical injuries.

Electric shock occurs when an electric current passes through your body. It can lead to heart failure and can damage other parts of your body. It can also burn your skin and other body tissues.

A very weak electrical object, like a battery, cannot do any harm to you, but inside the house you have devices and machines that use 220 volts.

Most machines in your house have safety features to protect you. It something goes wrong, a special wire leads the electricity to the ground where nothing can happen.

There are also electrical dangers outside your house. Trees that touch power lines can be dangerous. Lightning has more than enough electricity to kill a person. If you get caught in a thunderstorm stay away from open fields and high places. One of the safest places is your car, because lightning will only hit the outside metal of the car.



Words

  • current = a flow of electricity through a piece of metal 
  • device = machine or a tool that does something special
  • heart failure = when your heart stops beating 
  • injury = if you hurt yourself
  • lead to = cause
  • lightning = a powerful flash of light in the sky, during a thunderstorm 
  • occur = happen
  • power line = a large wire that carries electricity above or under the ground 
  • safety feature = things in machines or electric objects that protect you from being hurt
  • tissue = the material that forms animal or plant cells 
  • wire = a very thin piece of metal in which electricity can pass through