Is it dangerous to use a mobile phone during a thunder storm?
Uncategorized July 30th, 2008
Bigosi asked:
Recently a man alleged was completely struck by lightning while using a mobile phone. It's just a coincidence or a scientific fact? Around here (to the west of L. Victoria – Tanzania) people hour shut their mobiles wherever a storm threatens!
Recently a man alleged was completely struck by lightning while using a mobile phone. It's just a coincidence or a scientific fact? Around here (to the west of L. Victoria – Tanzania) people hour shut their mobiles wherever a storm threatens!
cellular telephone, Coincidence, Lightning, Mobile Phone, Mobiles, Tanzania, Thunder Storm, Victoria
This post has 13 comments
August 4th, 2008
yes it is very dangerous
August 5th, 2008
i dare say its just a coincidence! i dont see how that could have anything to do with it unless you had a coat hanger hanging off your mobile!
August 7th, 2008
no it aint. But carrying an umbrella with a metal point, now that would increase your chance getting fried.
August 8th, 2008
Coincidence. Unless your mobile phone has a 20ft tall metal aerial. Basic physics.
Additional to dirtyharry (below):
Please… stop spouting bollox and using incidents in China to “prove” a fact. *If* electromagnetic waves were such good conductors of electricty, why isn’t every cellphone mast, tv and radio broadcast mast surrounded by a charred lightning-struck landscape? Get real.
“(The belief that lightning can “follow the radio waves” into a cell phone is completely unfounded.) And although some people feel cell phones pose a risk when used outdoors because lightning is attracted to metal, handsets generally contain insignificant amounts of metal.”
August 11th, 2008
some people think that lightning can follow radio waves, but that isn’t true. So it’s safe to use your cellphone indoors during a storm. And it’s safe to use a cordless phone, too, but you probably should stay away from the base.
& the incident you say as simply coincident
August 11th, 2008
yes it is..
August 13th, 2008
it might have something to do with it but the chances of it happening are slim. i know taking a shower can be dangerous as water carries electricity so if your water pipes were struck you might be in for one hot shower!!
August 14th, 2008
Warning: Using your mobile phone in an electrical storm may be hazardous to your health.
Lightning hit dozens of sightseers at the Juyongguan section of the Great Wall this weekend. Fifteen people were slightly injured in the 2:40 PM strike on Saturday.
The 15 were sent to hospitals for treatment and by Sunday evening they had all been discharged in good condition, said an official with the Management Department of the Juyongguan Great Wall.
Witnesses said that an elderly person was using a mobile phone to make a call during a lightning storm.
The use of mobile phones in stormy weather has been previously reported in China as a cause of injuries and death. On June 23 this year, a woman was fatally struck by lightning on a street in Changchun, Jilin Province, while using a cellphone in bad weather.
It is very dangerous to use mobile phones where there is thunder and lightning, . The electromagnetic waves emitted by mobile phones are good conductors for electricity. The phone acts as a lightning rod and the electrical current from the lightning is concentrated in it, he said.
In places with lightning rods, it would be safer to use mobile phones in stormy weather, . However, in open places it could cause death or injury. Connection to the communication network creates the risk, , and phones should be turned off in such open places during storms.
It is also very dangerous to use mobile phones in electric storms while at gasoline stations,. The combination of a strong positive electrical charge in the mobile phone and combustible gas could easily cause a fire or an explosion.
August 16th, 2008
Yes, there is a slight change of getting struck by lightning, but in reality is not that much higher than if you are NOT using a cell phone.
August 16th, 2008
No it is not dangerous. You would have a better chance at using an electrical devise at a gas station. Which is almost slim to none. The most that will happen to you using a cellphone in a thunder storm is water damage. It more than like was a coincidence. And beside Myth Buster already proved that using a cellphone at a gas station will not ignite the pumps. The fumes from the pumps are too deluted with the air to ignite.
August 18th, 2008
No I don’t think so. I think it is superstition.
March 16th, 2009
No, coincidence.
Electricity can’t travell through air people. However talking on a corded phone is very very dangerous.
Your question is similar to asking, “Is holding a texta dangerous in a thunder storm”.
So the simple answer is no.
July 26th, 2010
My cell phone shut off when a bolt of lightning struck close to me…
I was in my vehicle when the lightning struck; there was a tremendous flash of white light and the clap of thunder at the same time. I looked at my cell phone and it was off… I don’t carry a watch so I use my phone as my time piece.
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