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From The CardioBlog comes news of another risk of using a cell phone. Of course, standing outside in a thunderstorm was never a really good idea in the first place.

Lightning strike cell phone warning

A new warning has been issued against cell phone usage outdoors during a thunderstorm. The warning was released after the British report of a 15-year-old girl who suffered various injuries from being struck by lightning while using her cell phone.

When someone is struck by lightning, the high resistance of the skin causes what is known as a ‘flashover– the flash of light conducted over the body. If someone is carrying or using a metal object such as a cell phone, the point at which the object meets their skin disrupts the flashover, causing a higher risk of internal injury and death. According to the National Weather Service, lightning is the second biggest storm killer next to floods. Approximately 70 people die from lightning strikes per year, often due to sudden cardiac arrest– and that’s only 10 percent of the struck. The other 90 percent suffer a variety of disability, including irreversible brain damage.

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