Can you get electrocuted driving over power lines?
If your vehicle comes in contact with a downed power line, you’re in extreme danger: Your vehicle, and the ground around you, is now energized and can electrocute you.
What happens if a live wire touches your car?
Motorists in this dangerous situation have to remember that the ground around the vehicle is electrified if a live wire is touching the car. “As long as you’re in your car, the electricity can get transferred around the frame of the car,” through the tires and then into the ground.
What happens if a car hits a power line?
Call 911. When you do, let the dispatcher know you were in a vehicle accident and there’s a downed power line on your vehicle. If anyone begins to approach your vehicle, or tries to help you, warn them to stay at least 20 feet away from the power line and anything it may touch.
What happens when a power line falls on your car?
When a power line falls on your car, it often charges the metal parts of the car with electrical current, meaning that if you attempt to exit as you normally do, you will be electrocuted. After the line falls, look around the inside of your car and out the windows.
What should you do if your car is on fire?
If their car is on fire, say, “Your car is on fire, so you need to get out quickly and carefully! Turn slowly toward the door of your car without touching the frame of the car. Open the door handle without touching any other part of the door. Swing it open, then jump out so that you land on both feet. Shuffle away from the car]
How do you get out of a burning car?
Shuffle or hop away from your car. After you jump out of your car, get away from the flaming car as fast as you can. Instead of walking and lifting up one foot at a time, shuffle from the car, keeping both your feet on the ground at all times about 6 inches (15 cm) apart. Alternatively, you could also hop away from your car.
What’s the most dangerous thing you can do in your car?
Getting behind the wheel is the most dangerous thing most of us do each day, and that’s before high-voltage electric equipment is added to the equation. Each year, countless vehicles crash into utility poles and other electrical equipment across the energy grid.