Lesson 4 (LV): Ohms Law and the Physiology of

Electrocution
Objectives:
■ Understand that electricity is a killer of opportunity always looking for a path to
ground.
■ Understand that current kills and low body resistance and higher voltage
facilitates high current flow.
■ Understand the connection between current levels and bodily responses.
■ Understand the role of time in electrocution and current path in electrocution.

The Physiology of Injury

Electricity is a seeker of opportunity. Wherever there is a voltage or potential
difference between two points there is an opportunity for current to flow from one
place to another completing a circuit. Though the human body is not a terrific
conductor, it only needs to have low enough resistance to offer a current path.
Electricity prefers the path of least resistance, but it will jump at any opportunity
and take multiple paths.

Voltage over 50 volts is generally regarded as life threatening, but it is really

not that simple. It is really a combination of your body resistance and the current
available from the source that causes fatalities. Sources like spark plugs and
ignition transformers, which have very high voltages (10,000 to 60,000 Volts) but
very limited current capacity cause severe discomfort but rarely kill. Arc welders
whose open circuit voltages hover around 50 volts but have very high current
capabilities sometimes kill careless users when wet conditions or contact with
solid grounds cause low enough body resistance to carry fatal currents.

Resistance plays a big part in the physiology of injury because it is the amount of
the current flowing through us that kills. Ohm’s Law says that the higher the
voltage, the more current will flow across a given amount of resistance. Higher
voltage poses a greater risk because more voltage provides the pressure
necessary to jump gaps, overcome insulation, and cause more current to flow
through you. A by-product of current flow across a resistance is heat – less
resistance = more current = more heat.

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 The Hot Dog Experiment
The human body behaves a lot like a hot dog. It has skin and soft, wet, fleshy
innards. The skin operates a little like the insulation on a wire and increases
resistance. The soft squishy inner parts have lower resistance and function more
like the wire itself. Higher voltage pierces the skin, resistance drops, and current
flow rises. Some commercial hot dog cookers actually work by passing a
current directly through the hot dog.

An experiment illustrated on the next page demonstrates some of the effects of

passing current through human flesh using the common hot dog. A simple hot
dog cooker was constructed using wooden insulators, nails, and a common
extension cord. Hot dog skin resistance was measured using an analog
ohmmeter. Electrical contact was established by inserting the nail electrodes into
the hot dog and resistance was measured again. An amp meter was attached to
the circuit, the circuit was energized with 110 volts AC, and current measurement
was logged at 15-second time intervals. The circuit was de-energized and
resistance was measured again after the cooking stopped.

Hot Dog Cooking Experiment

Experiment Step Picture

Skin resistance
measurement

15-20 KΩ

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Circuit resistance
measurement

350 Ω

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Experiment Step Picture
Observations
and Current
Measurements
at Time Intervals

Start = .6 A
15sec. = .8 A
30 sec. = 1.0 A
45 sec. = 1.2 A
60sec. = 1.3 A
Sizzling and
sweating skin
75 sec. = 1.3 A
smoking at
electrodes
90 sec. = 0 A
Burning at contact
points opens
circuit
Very warm
Post Cooking
Internal
Inspection

Skin Resistance
8KΩ

Note burn marks

at current entry
and exit points

*Note: This is not a UL approved hot dog cooker and must be

used with great care and special protective equipment.
*Note: Currents through the hot dog are more than lethal levels
for electrocution.

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When the human body becomes a conductor, two things happen: small currents
disrupt nerve functions causing muscles to contract or spasm, hearts to spasm
(fibrillate) or stop, and breathing paralysis. Larger currents actually cook tissue
that it passes through and burns tissue at contact points where the current enters
and exits the body. Blood vessels may clot, nerves may be damaged, internal
organs can be destroyed, and muscle contractions can be violent enough to
cause skeletal fractures. When both flexor and extensor muscles contract as a
pair, you may freeze and be unable to move or let go.

A recent episode of the TV show “Crossing Jordan” turned two up mysterious

deaths in a mental institution. One body was found hanged and another
crashed through an upper floor window landing on concrete stairs. Injuries to
both bodies were inconsistent with the apparent cause of death. Bruising and
ruptured vessels in the eyes common in hanging were not present in the first
victim. Massive hemorrhaging did not result when the second victim’s head was
split open on impact with the concrete steps. Physical evidence in both cases
indicated that the bodies were dead before they were hanged and crashed out of
the upper story window. An extensive investigation found small blisters on both
victim’s feet and tongue. The killer had placed a homemade electrode on their
tongue and plugged it into a wall outlet. A wet tongue and bare feet was the fatal
combination that hardly left a mark.

Estimated Effects of 60 Hz AC Current

It takes a surprisingly small current flow to wreak havoc in the human body. The
current it takes to light a 71/2 watt light bulb can be fatal.

Current Effect
mA
.5-3 Barely perceptible tingle.
3-10 Muscle contractions and pain.
10-40 Maximum current an average man can let go of.
30-75 Respiratory paralysis – breathing stops, muscles freeze.
100-200 Ventricular fibrillation threshold –loss of heart beat coordination fail to
move blood efficiently.
200-500 Heart clamps tight – cardiac arrest.
1500+ Tissue and internal organ damage.
15000- Typical trip point for residential fuses or circuit breakers.
20000
(15/20 A)

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The chart below illustrates Ohm’s Law in action. In the first case, high resistance
limited current flow to what was characterized earlier as a barely perceptible
tingle. Wet skin at the same household voltage raise current flow to lethal levels.
More voltage aggravates the situation.

The Role of Body Resistance and Current Flow

Condition Resistance Voltage Current

Dry skin 100,000 Ω 120 VAC 1 mA
Wet or broken skin 1000 Ω 120 VAC 120 mA
High voltage skin penetration 500 Ω 1000 VAC 1A

Ohms Law and Electrocution

(A=V/R) -- Current (Amps) = Voltage divided by Resistance (DC) or
Impedance(AC) in Ohms

As resistance drops or voltage rises, current flow rises. Typical hand to hand
resistance of 1000 Ω at 480 V. becomes a fatal .48 A or 480 mA current.

The Impact of Conditions

Other factors have an impact on the resistance of the total circuit and current flow
in an accident. Work gloves, clothing, shoe leather and anything that is a poor
conductor between the contact point and your skin will add resistance in series
with your body resistance and limit current flow. Things that are good
conductors that are in contact with your skin and the contact point with the
current source improve the connection and reduce circuit resistance. Metal
jewelry, rings, watch bands, pierced jewelry, metal glasses frames, metal braces
and prosthetics, aluminum ladders, scaffolds, and that pipe you were carrying
may act as a lightning rod and terminal on your body, dramatically increasing
current flow. Loose clothing that might normally have some protective effect can
snag on a live part and expose bare skin.

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 Shock Resistance Table
(Resistance in Ohms)
Condition Dry Wet
Finger touch 40K to 1 meg Ω 4-15K Ω
Hand holding wire 15-50K Ω 3-6K Ω
Finger-thumb grasp 10-30K Ω 2-5K Ω
Hand holding pliers 5-10K Ω 1-3K Ω
Palm touch 3-8K Ω 1-2K Ω
Hand around 1.5” pipe 1-3K Ω 500-1500 Ω
Two hands around 1.5” pipe 500-1500 Ω 250-750 Ω
Hand immersed 200-500 Ω
Foot immersed 100-300 Ω
Human Body, excluding skin 200 – 1000 Ω
*Information compiled by Kouwenhoven and Milnor

The Role of Time

Small currents (16 ma.) insufficient to kill you can cause you to lock up and
extend your contact time before someone can release you or cut the power.
Currents as little as 10 ma. can be fatal over longer times. Extended nerve
disruption may prolong breathing paralysis or heart fibrillation. Emergency
response time adds a second dimension to the impact of time. Resuscitation
(CPR) has the greatest rate of success if started within 4 minutes. Advanced
cardiac life support by paramedics has the greatest rate of success if it is started
within 8 minutes.

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 The Role of the Current Path

Where the current enters and exits the body is also crucial. If you are reaching
into an equipment enclosure and make contact to a live part with your right hand
and you are leaning your upper right arm against the enclosure, the current will
likely enter your hand and exit through your upper arm to the grounded
enclosure. You are more likely to survive. If you were reaching in with your right
hand and gripping the metal door with your left hand, you have given the current
a path through you chest and heart. The difference is whether your become
known as the one-armed man or the deceased.

(A) Touch Potential (B) Step Potential (C and D) Touch /

Step Potential
Current passing through the heart and lungs is the
most serious.

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 Real Time Photos of an Actual Electrocution

Frame 1 Frame 2 Frame 3

The photos above were taken by the LA electrical utility in 1996 dramatically
illustrating what happens in a high voltage incident.

Frame 1. The person, who was on PCP at the time, was threatening to kill
himself. Utility workers arrived at the scene and killed the low voltage lines below
him before he made contact. He is mounting the lower cross arm in this photo.
The lineman can be seen in the lower portion of the photo.

Frame 2. Bent on destruction, he reached out his hand and grabbed the line
above! At that instant, 16,600 volts shot through his body. If you can believe it,
the guy is inside of the ball of fire that you see. He did not fall at that moment.
The air surrounding him became ionized and began to conduct and actually burn.
The small ball of fire that you see towards the bottom near the street lamp is
where the arc went to ground through the secondary conductors. Notice the
whipping action of the wire he is holding onto.

You might find it interesting to compare all the pictures with one another to try to
see if you can pick out all the changes as massive amounts of current try to
reach ground!

Frame 3. As you can see, the ball of fire has started to subside. If you look
closely you can see his legs at the bottom of the fireball. He is still standing on
the cross arm. A flash of electrical power of this magnitude would kill most
people. If you can believe it, this guy survived the contact with the high voltage,
was severely injured, and is still alive! This event underscores the unpredictable
nature of electrical events.

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The tremendous pressure in higher voltage currents that can ionize air around a
victim, causing the air itself to conduct and burn, makes the paths it will take very
unpredictable.

The pyrotechnics in the photos are typical of incidents where something makes
direct contact with power lines.

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Lesson 5 (LV): Other Electrical Hazards
Objectives:
ƒ Familiarize people with the incidence of burns and other injuries in electrical
incidents.
ƒ Familiarize people with arc flash hazards that can cause skeletal injuries from
concussion and attendant fall, eye injuries from arc flash, hearing damage
from the pressure wave, and severe flesh burns from intense heat.
ƒ Shock people with gruesome details of severe injury from burns.
ƒ Provide basic guidelines on emergency response to avoid injury to the
rescuers.
ƒ Provide basic guidance on recommended first aid response.
Electrocution is Not the Only Hazard

Shock is a principal threat in low voltage incidents, but is not the only thing that
can hurt you. It is only one of the big five electrical hazards: shock, blast, flash,
thunder, and fire. Eighty percent of injuries in electrical incidents are burns.
Many victims of high current incidents never receive a shock but are injured
instead by the heat, the flash, and the blast.

The Other Horsemen of the Electrical Apocalypse

Blast ... “I seemed to have left my feet. I think I was over there somewhere.”
Flash ... “They said there would be a bright light. Where’s the door.”
Thunder ... “What is that ringing in my ears? What? Huh?”
Fire ... “I smell something burning, and I think it is me!”
Fall ... “It wasn’t the blast. It was the sudden stop 30 foot below.”

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When current finds a hard path to ground, the resistance in the circuit is very low
and current flow is very high. Frequently, the conductor actually vaporizes under
the intense load. Copper in conductors instantly liquefies and boils into a rapidly
expanding vapor cloud. When only a few cubic inches of copper expand 67,000
times on vaporization, the tremendous pressure wave can breach metal
enclosures and lift a man right off his feet and hurl him across the room. At the
point of the arc temperatures can reach 35,000o F. Though the intensity of
the temperature decreases rapidly with the square of the distance from it, it only
takes a skin temperature of 175o F for .1 of a second to cause a second
degree burn and 205o F for .1 second to cause a third degree burn and
permanent tissue damage.

To put this in perspective, holding your finger in the flame of a candle for 1
second will give you a first degree burn which becomes a second degree burn in
another second. A candle flame is not large or 35,000o F.

The pressure wave and vapor cloud brings the violence to you. The bright flash
assaults your eyes. The blast causes sound pressures as high as 140-150 dBA,
many times in excess of the 120 dBA threshold of pain, and the 85 dBA extended
exposure OSHA limit for required hearing protection. Molten copper and heat in
the vapor cloud engulfs you in a fireball burning exposed skin and igniting
clothing to add injury to insult.

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The blast can rupture eardrums at 720 lbs/ft2 and collapse lungs at 1728-2160
lbs/ft2. It can also bring with it secondary consequences if you are hit by flying
debris, thrown into other live conductors, or simply take a header off the ladder,
scaffold, or catwalk you were on.

In some case, currents large enough to sustain an arc are not sufficient to blow a
protective fuse or open circuit breakers. Sustained arcing can spread fire
throughout a structure or area. Loose high voltage conductors can whip around
and chase you down.

Multiple Injuries and the Rescue Reflex

A review of NIOSH accident investigations indicates that electrocutions are often
multiple injury or fatality events. Some of these result when more than one
person is in contact with a crane, boom truck, or payload when contact is made
with overhead power lines. Others result when a workman makes contact with
live parts and a co-worker reflexively tries to free him and becomes part of
the circuit. Statistics show that supervision was present in more than half of the
fatal instances. Supervisors were one third of the fatalities where they were
present.

Case Examples
Electronic technician died of burns sustained in an explosion in a 20,000 V switch
compartment at a rail car maintenance show. The victim sprayed cleaning fluid
on energized circuits causing ignition.

Hydro-electric supervisor died as a result of burns he suffered in an electrical

fire. While calibrating an analog meter, a co-worker dropped the overheated
voltmeter onto exposed high voltage bus bars, creating a short circuit and a fire
which ignited both worker’s clothing. The co-worker was also seriously burned.

These two specific examples gleaned from the NIOSH study of fatal incidents
illustrate hazards other than electrocution. Survivors frequently suffer serious
burns.

On June 12, 1998, an electrician working at D.O.E. Ames Laboratory at Iowa

State University was completing modifications to Motor Control Centers (MCC) 2
and 3, in a Waste Encapsulation and Storage Facility (WESF). The electrician
removed the door operating mechanism from a spare circuit breaker in MCC-2 to
use on a circuit breaker in MCC-3. The electrician was reinserting the screws
holding the circuit breaker to the mounting plate on MCC-2. As he tightened the
third of four screws on the circuit breaker, the screw made contact with the line
side wiring behind the circuit breaker bucket wall and penetrated the wire

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insulation. The resulting short circuit created vaporized metal and ionized air in
the bucket area, which then resulted in a phase-to-phase fault and flash at an
adjacent circuit 480-volt breaker within the bucket. The substation circuit breaker
feeding MCC-2 tripped, causing loss of normal power to the facility and the
backup diesel to start as designed. The electrician, a survivor, received second
degree burns from an arc flash.

Recent accident data from Canada (2001) indicated some additional patterns.
For every fatality there were 4-5 critical injuries and 10 less critical injuries.
The graphic pictures in the gallery on the next page illustrate some of the tissue
damage. Remember, these folks were the survivors.

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 Survivors

Entry Burn to Torso Hand Right After Injury

Exit Burn on Foot Same Hand Split from Tissue

Damage and Swelling

Thermal Burns Caused by Arc Same Hand After Removal of

Exiting Knees and Igniting Permanently Damaged Skin
Pants and Muscle During Treatment

Arc Flash Burns Attracted by

Moisture in Arm Pits

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 Degrees of Burn
Burns are classified as 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th degree. When burns cover more than
10% of a child’s body or 15-20% of an adult’s body, the trauma becomes life
threatening. The seriousness of the burns compounds the risk.

Doctors use charts like the one below to help quickly estimate the percentage of
burned skin. The approach is sometimes is referred to as the “rule of nines” with
each major part of the front or back of the body counting as approximately 9% of
its area.

First-degree burns are the least serious, characterized by redness, and heal in
a couple weeks without scarring.

Second-degree burns are more serious and painful. Superficial second degree
burns characterized by blisters and takes a couple weeks to heal. Deep second
degree burns may appears as red or white wounds. If healing takes more than 2
weeks, removing dead tissue and grafting may be necessary to reduce scarring.

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Third degree burns penetrate all of the layers of skin and cause permanent
damage and scars. Third degree burns present as white or black, hard, dry
wounds, from which surviving body hair can be easily pulled.

Fourth degree burns are so serious as to expose muscle and tendons. These
results often require amputation and extensive surgical intervention.

Inhalation Injury

Fire can also cause inhalation damage to the lungs that might not be immediately
apparent. There are 3 types of inhalation injuries associated with fire, and more
than a hundred known toxic substances present in fire smoke, when inhalation
injuries are combined with external burns the chance of death can increase
significantly. Here is some general information on the three threats in inhalation
injuries.

1. Systemic toxin damage, such as carbon monoxide.

2. Heat inhalation damage.
3. Smoke inhalation damage.

Systemic Toxins:

Systemic toxins affect the supply of oxygen. If someone is found unconscious or

acting perplexed in the surroundings of an enclosed fire, think of this as a
possible cause. Temporary or even permanent damage to organs, including the
brain, may be the consequence from such toxin poisoning. Carbon monoxide
intoxication could be accompanied by no symptoms before coma.

Heat Inhalation:
True lung burn only occurs if you are sucking on a hot air/flame source, or have
high pressure force the heat into you. These are conditions not uncommon when
a fault exposes you to a blast in the confined quarters of switch gear. In most
cases, thermal injury is confined to the upper airways, because the trachea
usually shields the lung from thermal loads. However, secondary airway
involvement can occur after inhalation of steam, as it has a greater thermal
capacity than dry air. When hot air enters the nose, damage to the mucous
membranes can readily transpire as the upper airway acts as a cooling chamber.

Smoke Inhalation:
Smoke intoxication is frequently hidden by more visible injuries, such as burns,
as a result of fire. In a disaster situation this can lead to not receiving the medical
attention needed, due to the rescue teams taking care of apparently more
seriously injured patients. Patients that appear unharmed can collapse due to
major smoke inhalation. Sixty to 80% of fatalities resulting from burn injuries can
be attributed to smoke inhalation.

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According to a National Fire Protection Association survey in 1997, 4,675
firefighters suffered burn injuries as a result of performing their assigned duties,
of which 3,770 also suffered inhalation injuries.

Inhalation injury usually appears within 2~48 hours post burn. To determine if
someone may have inhalation injuries, consider:

† Was the fire or smoke in a closed area?

† Did the patient faint?
† Is there soot around the mouth or nose?
† Evidence of respiratory distress or upper airway obstruction?
† Are there burns around face or neck?
† Have nasal hairs, eyebrows, eyelashes been singed?
† Is consciousness impaired?

The earliest consequence of inhalation injury is upper airway edema, which is

commonly seen during the first 6 to 24 hours after injury. Early obstruction of the
upper airway is managed with intubation. Initial treatment consists of removing
the patient from the gas and allowing him to breathe air or oxygen.

Emergency Response and Victim First Aid

Getting someone with serious injuries to a trauma center quickly is critical to
survival. Proper first aid can minimize trauma. Knowing exit routes, emergency
phone numbers, who the first responders at the accident site are, how you alert
them, and the location of the nearest burn center before work begins can save
valuable time in the event something bad happens.

Kill the power if at all possible.

Use insulated tools to free people from conductive parts and downed wires.
Hot sticks, rubber hose, dry rope, or a dry plank can be used to release a
person from an energized part.
People in vehicles in contact with power lines should stay put until the line is
de-energized. Step potential can kill when exiting. If fire or other hazard
threatens them, they should be instructed to jump clear so that no part of their
body touches the ground while they are in close contact with the vehicle.
Have victim drop and roll to extinguish flames. Use a fire blanket if available.
Cool the burns with water or saline until the skin returns to normal
temperature (5-10 min). Safety showers offer a quick option.
Have someone call 911 or site emergency teams as soon as possible and
confirm they are on the way. Delay here adds to the time it takes to get the
injured person to a trauma center, hospital, or burn treatment center. What
happens in the first 30 minutes is critical to survival.
Remember the A, B, C’s ... establish an Airway, stop Bleeding, start CPR.

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Use you finger to clear obstructions from the mouth, pull the lower jaw down
and forward, or use a CPR airway from a first aid kit to make sure there is a
clear airway.
Use a compression bandage and pressure above wounds to stop rapid blood
loss.
Start CPR if breathing has stopped. Consult the Washington School of
Medicine http://depts.washington.edu/learncpr/index.html for CPR instructions
and the pocket CPR guide found on the next page.
Blast victims may be blinded, disoriented, and unable to hear commands.
Handle victims with care in case there are broken bones or spinal injuries
from falls and impact.
Remove restricting items ... shoes, belts, collars, and jewelry.
Elevate burned limbs to reduce swelling.
Treat for shock, maintain body temperature, administer oxygen, give nothing
by mouth.
Cover wounds and burns with clean dry sheets or blankets. Wounds should
be covered with sterile dressings or clean sheets. Many industrial first aid kits
have special burn packs.
Have someone familiar with the actual incident brief medical staff of the vital
details of the incident.
Check for signs of inhalation injury if the fire was in a closed space, there is
smoke and soot around the nose and mouth, there are facial burns,
respiratory difficulty, or loss of consciousness.

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