Electrical shock 277 v

[mbrooke]

Internal injury may not be noticeable at first. Going to hospital and having vitals monitored can tell them if a critical internal organ isn't doing what it is supposed to be doing before it becomes a sudden emergency later on. Not a medical expert, but have heard of them discovering internal problems just with abnormal O2 levels, kinds of things that after some time has passed can make you suddenly drop dead with little or no warning.

General rule is to go to emergency room after any severe shock incident, even if you think you feel fine.

Yup, well said.

 

[Sierrasparky]

As others have said you need to report it.

You could have issues that you don't know.
They call it diffuse electrical syndrome and there was a article some time back on ECM. You may have cooked something internal. Not something to play around with.

I admire your willing to work. However you need to take care of yourself.

 

[LarryFine]

Bottom line: Better to go to the hospital and be wrong than not go and be wrong.

 

[Besoeker3]

Bes and I have had our differences of opinion in the past but, as a former member of the NFPA 70E TC, I'm giving him a double thumbs up on every comment/post he's made so far.

Thank you very kindly, Mr Alexander. Site safety is a serious matter. My comment about my post being deleted was in case I had stepped over the boundary on legal matters. FWIW, my company was part of the Eaton Corporation so we had to observe practices on both sides of the pond.

 

[Sahib]

General rule is to go to emergency room after any severe shock incident, even if you think you feel fine.

Going to ER is too late for OP now but a general medical check up for the OP is in order now.

 

[drcampbell]

... There have been cases of people dropping dead several days after an electric shock. I've never fully understood why ...

The usual cause of delayed death is electroporation -- current punching holes in your cell walls. With enough porosity, your cells can't maintain electrolyte balance and you slowly poison yourself. It's particularly insidious for two reasons: [1] the first sign that anything's wrong is sudden death, which is difficult to treat, and [2] since the victim is injured, not sick, and appears to be OK, they usually don't think to test for problems like liver enzyme imbalance.

There's a treatment available, but its effectiveness diminishes rapidly if not administered immediately.

Electroporation doesn't kill you quickly because a more-severe electrical contact injury usually results in a prompt death from some other cause.

Dr. Raphael Lee, University of Chicago, discovered this effect. (late 1980s or thereabout)

After electroporation was discovered while investigating electrical trauma, it became a useful clinical technique for selectively killing cancer cells, and for introducing drugs and genetically-modified DNA directly into cells.

 

[sameguy]

Soo, the question is... what have you done or did you just go back to work?

 

[Wire-Smith]

Go to the hospital now if you haven't already, it can kill you several days later, sounds like you have serious internal damage. You need an ekg to check heart rythym.

I had a co worker die a couple years ago, seemed very healthy, shocked by 120 and next day collapsed dead, no known health problems, didn't get checked out after shock

 

[Besoeker3]

I do hope the OP takes the sound advice which has been given by members here.

A related tail that might give some a wee smile.
I grew up on a hill farm in Scotland. Kinclune. Lots of sheep. Hence my affiliation with collies.
One day, I was walking back home in the evening with my dog - the one I had then. I grabbed the electric fence we used to contain the odd cattle beast. Kinda macho thing we do as youngsters. One hand on the fence then the dog decided to nudge the other. That was a real belter of a shock for both of us. Wet grass and he had no boots.

He took off like a rocket. I thought he'd never dare come near me again. Next day, system normal.

 

[meternerd]

A few folks had a question as to the path of the shock.....if the OP had just separated the wires that were in the wire nut, one hand would be on the hot and one would be on the load wire, which is probably ground potential through the fixture on a 277 system. That puts the path hand to hand, which is through the heart. Mentioned that it had been raining, which means wet shoes and probably a wet ladder as well. The fact that the return path was through the fixture and a wet ladder may have saved a life. Electricity tends to follow the nerves and blood vessels during a shock and any injury may take quite a while to appear (such as ringing in the ears or a burning sensation, numbness, dizziness or nausea, etc). This is all based on info we (electric/water utility) get at our safety meetings. I won't comment on the need for medical attention, but I will say that we were REQUIRED to have a medical check after any shocks, regardless of how small they seemed at the time. Failure to do so was grounds for termination. Covers you and also covers the employer.

 

[sameguy]

True Meternerd.
But let's hear more of this "hill farm", so how many hectors do you need to raise hills?

 

[Besoeker3]

True Meternerd.
But let's hear more of this "hill farm", so how many hectors do you need to raise hills?

I think you might mean hectares possible.
I think it was around 2,000 hectares.
And we didn't raise hills, they raised us.

 

[ptonsparky]

I think you might mean hectares possible.
I think it was around 2,000 hectares.
And we didn't raise hills, they raised us.

That is a tad over 4900 acres. Good sized farm.

 

[Besoeker3]

That is a tad over 4900 acres. Good sized farm.

Yes, but lets not wander off topic.
My fault. The OP got shocked. My dog got shocked. I got shocked.
We learn,

 

[LarryFine]

Yes, but lets not wander off topic.

In this forum? Never! :roll:

 

[Sahib]

The usual cause of delayed death is electroporation -- current punching holes in your cell walls. With enough porosity, your cells can't maintain electrolyte balance and you slowly poison yourself. It's particularly insidious for two reasons: [1] the first sign that anything's wrong is sudden death, which is difficult to treat, and [2] since the victim is injured, not sick, and appears to be OK, they usually don't think to test for problems like liver enzyme imbalance.

There's a treatment available, but its effectiveness diminishes rapidly if not administered immediately.

Electroporation doesn't kill you quickly because a more-severe electrical contact injury usually results in a prompt death from some other cause.

Dr. Raphael Lee, University of Chicago, discovered this effect. (late 1980s or thereabout)

After electroporation was discovered while investigating electrical trauma, it became a useful clinical technique for selectively killing cancer cells, and for introducing drugs and genetically-modified DNA directly into cells.

Interesting. Isn't the electroporation an electrical hazard that happens at comparatively higher voltages, say 12 kV?

 

[Besoeker3]

Interesting. Isn't the electroporation an electrical hazard that happens at comparatively higher voltages, say 12 kV?

According to the Eaton electrical safety instructor we had said as low as 70V could be fatal. The OP had a near miss.

 

[drcampbell]

I have read about the basic phenomenon, but I'm not an authority on electrical trauma.
If people have died several days after a low-voltage* electrical-contact injury, I would guess it's probably also a low-voltage hazard.
I would also guess that it's more a function of I²T -- current and time -- than voltage.
But like I said, I would be guessing.


* "low voltage" is defined as "600 volts, or less" in the States.

I have read about one electrical fatality that probably occurred at 24 volts DC. The deceased had wedged himself into a car trunk while installing a car stereo and couldn't move after receiving a shock. The shock continued for hours and although he was already dead, he was still exhibiting tetanic muscle spasms when discovered.
Yes, 24 volts. It was a megastereo.
Or it might have been due to a 120-volt worklight. It was ruled accidental and never thoroughly investigated.

 

[GoldDigger]

I have read about the basic phenomenon, but I'm not an authority on electrical trauma.
If people have died several days after a low-voltage* electrical-contact injury, I would guess it's probably also a low-voltage hazard.
I would also guess that it's more a function of I²T -- current and time -- than voltage.
But like I said, I would be guessing.


* "low voltage" is defined as "600 volts, or less" in the States.

I have read about one electrical fatality that probably occurred at 24 volts DC. The deceased had wedged himself into a car trunk while installing a car stereo and couldn't move after receiving a shock. The shock continued for hours and although he was already dead, he was still exhibiting tetanic muscle spasms when discovered.
Yes, 24 volts. It was a megastereo.
Or it might have been due to a 120-volt worklight. It was ruled accidental and never thoroughly investigated.

If you bypass the skin resistance (sweat, puncture of skin on a sharp energized point, etc.) then 24 volts could indeed be hazardous. Especially for a cross body path. DC is not as hazardous as 60Hz with regard to disrupting heart rhythm. I will bet on the worklight, since constant DC is not likely to cause muscle spasms.
Although I suppose it could have involved making and breaking the contact, like the armature of a buzzer.

 

[kwired]

Automotive main electrical systems are usually 12VDC. Some components and subsystems could be different voltage though. I am not an audio expert but output of sound system, probably acts sort of like AC even if not a true AC waveform.

120 volt work light being involved would have raised my suspicion enough to warrant looking into it further.