Winter brings its share of dangers that people must deal with to stay warm and safe.
These dangers can include carbon monoxide poisoning, hypothermia, and frozen pipes that can burst and make homes uninhabitable.
Public safety officials and experts say there are many ways to prepare to avoid these winter dangers and protect yourself.
Stay safe at home
Officials say during a winter storm, people should stay indoors. However, home heating systems running for hours can increase the risk of carbon monoxide poisoning because deadly fumes can be produced by boilers, stoves and radiators, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention diseases.
Carbon monoxide can also be created when people use portable generators or run their cars in their garage to keep warm or charge their phones.
Dr. Alex Harding, assistant professor of emergency medicine at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, said that because carbon monoxide is odorless and colorless, people may not be aware of it.
“The symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning can be truly insidious. They can arise in patients and can range from a simple headache or mild nausea to loss of consciousness and convulsions,” he said.
Managing hypothermia
The cold weather affecting much of the East Coast can be dangerous and even deadly due to dangerous exposure to the elements. This week’s winter storms are moving south, and cold air will likely be present as far away as Georgia, said Jon Palmer, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Gray, Maine.
The cold temperatures could surprise residents in parts of the country that have experienced a mostly mild winter so far.
“Very cold temperatures and winds can make temperatures appear much colder, which can bring in cold air that can potentially lead to frostbite at a much faster rate or hypothermia at a much faster rate than normal “, said Mr. Palmer.
Prolonged exposure to freezing temperatures can put people at risk of hypothermia, a condition that occurs when the body loses heat faster than it can produce it.
“Hypothermia is certainly one of the biggest concerns, especially if we have any certainty about power grids or power outages,” Dr. Harding argued.
The danger of hypothermia is greater for a person who is outdoors, exposed to gusts, and who is not wearing appropriate clothing or whose clothes are wet.
“If they have a safe, warm place where they can curl up, where they have water and food and all those kinds of necessities… then that’s going to limit their exposure to those risks,” said Dr. Harding.
However, vulnerable populations such as people with disabilities or people experiencing homelessness may have difficulty finding a warm and safe place to stay.
Protecting your home’s pipes
Frozen pipes in a home during harsh winters are a particular problem in some southern areas because these amenities are often located outside of structures. But other regions of the country are also facing this problem.
Jose Parra, master plumber at Abacus Plumbing, Air Conditioning & Electrical in Houston, advises people to insulate all pipes exposed to the outdoors, turn off and drain sprinkler systems, and let faucets run with water. inside a home during freezing temperatures so water can flow through the pipes and protect them.
“A lot of what we’re fixing, I’d say 80 to 90 percent, could have been avoided with just a little bit of work up front,” Parra said.
Electric Vehicle Problems
Experts acknowledge that the cold can be tough on electric vehicles, but they say that with a little planning and a little adjustment, owners should be able to get around pretty much normally.
Inside electric vehicle batteries, lithium ions circulate in a liquid electrolyte, producing electricity. But they move more slowly in the electrolyte when it’s cold and don’t release as much energy. This reduces battery life and can drain a battery more quickly.
In the short term, automakers are likely to find better ways to protect battery life and warm them for charging, said Neil Dasgupta, associate professor of mechanical engineering and materials sciences at the University of Texas. Michigan, to the Associated Press earlier this year. And new battery chemistries are being developed that are more resilient in cold weather.
Juan A. Lozano et Patrick Whittle, The Associated Press
