Natural Disasters and Impacts on Health 2J
Natural Disasters and Impacts on Health 2J : Winter Storms. The immediate effect of a severe winter storm is usually felt in disruption of traffic patterns and a severe spike in automobile accidents. Trauma from traffic collisions can vary from orthopedic injury, to severe vascular compromise, to life threatening bruising to the thorax and abdomen. Head injuries, fractures, and bruising are also caused by falls in icy walking conditions and are more common among the elderly. Exposure to the elements is also of great concern in a winter storm. Individuals may incur frostbite from extended exposure to the unusual cold. Severe cases may require amputation. Since power lines and phone systems are commonly disrupted in a severe winter storm, death from carbon monoxide poisoning and hypothermia is also a large concern as individuals frequently use inappropriate heaters indoors in an attempt to stay warm. Additionally, death and injury from fires are increasingly common in winter storms as individuals leave candles, fireplaces, and heaters burning throughout the night as sources of both heat and light. Furthermore, as previously sedentary individuals venture out into the winter storm in order to effect repairs or clear snow from driveways and roofs, the incidence of unstable angina and acute myocardial infarctions increase dramatically.
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