Lightning Safety

By Nancy Steinbach
Broadcast: July 2, 2003
This is Steve Ember with the VOA Special English Health Report.
Lightning is the release of electrical energy in the sky. Lightning can start fires. It also can kill.
During a storm, the normally 1)neutral particles in clouds hit each other. They become electrically charged. As they flow toward each other, they form an electric 2)spark of light.
Some lightning is created between clouds. Other lightning is created within clouds. And some is created when 3)negative charges from a cloud's base move down to meet positive charges rising from Earth.
Lightning that strikes the Earth carries one or more electrical discharges called strokes. The bright light seen in a flash of lightning is called a return stroke. Return strokes travel at the speed of light. They discharge about one-hundred-million 4)volts of electricity. They heat the air to more than thirty-three-thousand degrees Celsius². Air heated by return strokes expands and produces the sound of 5)thunder.
About four-hundred people are struck by lightning each year in the United States alone. About one-hundred die. The electrical force of the lighting³ affects the heartbeat. Lightning can also stop the chest muscles or damage the breathing center in the brain.
Experts tell people to seek the safety of a building or a hard-top vehicle any time they hear thunder, even if it is not raining. They say lightning can strike as far as sixteen kilometers away from any rainfall. Lightning can also travel sideways for up to the same distance. At least ten percent of lightning happens without clouds in the sky.
Safety experts also say that people in a building should stay away from anything with wires or pipes that lead to the outside. The National Weather Service says if you plan to disconnect any electronic equipment, do so before the storm arrives. Do not use a wired telephone. Do not use water. All these can carry electricity.
People who are outside should make sure there are not the tallest things around. Bend low to the ground, but do not lie down. Do not stand near a tree or any tall object. Stay out of -- and away from -- water. Get away from bicycles and other things made of metal. A car is safe, but do not touch any metal inside.
Experts also say that a person who has been struck by lightning carries no electrical charge afterward⁴. It is safe to begin emergency treatment.
This VOA Special English Health Report was written by Nancy Steinbach. This is Steve Ember.

注释：
1) neutral [5nju:trEl] adj.无确定性质的，(颜色等)不确定的
2) spark [spB:k] n.火花，火星，闪光
3) negative [5ne^Etiv] adj.负的，阴性的
4) volt¹ [vEult] n.（电工）伏特
5) thunder [5WQndE] n.雷，雷声

1 volt   

n.伏特，伏

参考例句：

• You may use 100 and 110 volt appliances in your room.您可以在房间使用100及110伏特的电器。
• The common service voltage of electric power in our country is 220/380 volt.我国普通供电电压为220/380伏。

2 Celsius   

adj.摄氏温度计的，摄氏的

参考例句：

• The temperature tonight will fall to seven degrees Celsius.今晚气温将下降到七摄氏度。
• The maximum temperature in July may be 36 degrees Celsius.七月份最高温度可能达到36摄氏度。

3 lighting   

n.照明，光线的明暗，舞台灯光

参考例句：

• The gas lamp gradually lost ground to electric lighting.煤气灯逐渐为电灯所代替。
• The lighting in that restaurant is soft and romantic.那个餐馆照明柔和而且浪漫。

4 afterward   

adv.后来；以后

参考例句：

• Let's go to the theatre first and eat afterward. 让我们先去看戏，然后吃饭。
• Afterward,the boy became a very famous artist.后来，这男孩成为一个很有名的艺术家。