So, How Was Your Day?

Well, as for me, my truck broke down on the way to work (the alternator gave up) so I had to walk the last 2 miles into the office with my computer backpack on. Then, I ended up receiving 2nd & 3rd degree burns on two fingers of my left hand from a 4000-volt flashover while I was working on a piece of equipment. I should have been paying attention to what I was doing and not let myself become distracted. But because I did, sizz-pop! Electricity doesn't let you get away with anything. I should have a picture or two of the damage to put up here soon.

So, this is how my day have been up to about noon today. I'll let you know how it goes for the rest of the day...

[LATER]

Actually, things only got a little better. After cutting a finger on my right hand when I picked up a spring with a sharp edge on it, I did get the alternator and nursed the truck back to the shop. Unfortunately, when I went to install the new alternator in the truck, it wouldn't fit. Well, I decided to use the regulator and brush set from the new alternator in order to fix the older one. After getting everything swapped around, I went to install the original alternator with the new guts in it in the truck, only to discover it wouldn't fit. Come to find out, the tensioning bracket had moved up and the new one would have fit in the first place. Since it was getting dark, I decided to limp the truck home with what was left in the battery. I did make it, but as soon as I got home, it started raining hard, so I decided to try to fix it again tomorrow.

I did take pics of the burns on my fingers (below) and you can see from the side view of the index finger (the 'pointer' finger) that there is a white-ish mark just before the knuckle. This mark is a second degree burn and indicates the entry point, or first contact point, I made with the equipment I was working on with 4kV still energized. It's actually like a blister, in that it's a patch of surface skin separated from the underlying area. About ten minutes after this happened, it started weeping. I'm going to have to remove the dead surface layer eventually.


The second picture shows the middle finger sporting a 3rd degree burn. This was the second point of contact, so the arc from the high voltage lept between my hand and the equipment at this point. When an arc is created like this, it creates a heat that is purportedly hotter than the Sun, if ever so briefly. In the work we do, we have found that an electrical arc can be strong enough to vaporize copper, so it was no surprise that my hand didn't put up much resistance.


And of course, the third picture is after I bandaged it all up. The good part about all of this is that I still have full movement in my hand and can still work with it. Also, since it was my left hand, it isn't effecting my activities too much.

I did make an appointment to see my doctor over this and I anticipate that everything should be ok.