Train surfing: Electrical high-voltage injuries are so dangerous!

Train surfing: Electrical high-voltage injuries are so dangerous!

Wien, Österreich - The increasing popularity of train surfing among young people has accepted worrying proportions. Analyzes by Viktoria König and her team at the clinical department for plastic, aesthetic and reconstructive surgery of the MedUni Vienna show that this dangerous activity leads to an alarming increase in high voltage injuries. The study, which evaluated data from 32 train surfers and 70 victims of work accidents between 1994 and 2024, emphasizes that electrical injuries not only cause profound physical damage due to high tension, but also present the patients with immense challenges in accident and recovery surgery.

The mostly affected are young men, 90 percent of whom have come from this group in recent decades. Train surfing is an increasingly common cause of high-voltage injuries. These injuries occur, even if there is no direct contact with the electrical lines: high -voltage lighting sheets can achieve temperatures of up to 20,000 degrees Celsius and cause serious damage to several organ systems.

serious injuries and high mortality

The results of the study show that train surfer suffered serious injuries on average than people with work-related high-voltage accidents. While train surfer often suffers from burns of over 48 percent of the body surface, work-related injuries have an average of only 25 percent. In addition, the mortality rate after high -voltage accidents in both groups is 25 percent. The severity of the injuries also leads to longer stays in the intensive care unit-in the case of the train surfer, more than 38 days compared to around 18 days for work-related accidents.

In addition, train surfer per patient has to be operated significantly more often-on average 5.3 times, while this is only 2.8 times in the event of work-related injuries. These terrifying numbers illustrate that the prevention measures urgently need to be reinforced in order to make young people aware of the risks of train surfing and other dangerous activities.

prevention measures and security standards

The need to prevent such accidents is underlined by the current guidelines for avoiding accident. Information from the electrical specialist show that electric accidents often lead to severe, sometimes fatal, injuries when tensioning. The identification of danger areas is therefore an essential measure for accident prevention. The DGUV Information 203-016 offers helpful principles for identifying work areas on electrical systems with nominal voltage over 1 kv. This information is not legally binding, but contribute to safety in the event of damage and increase legal certainty for responsible companies.

The new version of this guideline has a triple extended scope and contains comprehensive information on the labeling and demarcation of dangerous work areas. Practical examples illustrate typical situations in color photos and indicate the essential role of instructions and approvals that must take place before working on electrical systems. The system manager is also obliged to clearly communicate the security measures with the employees, which is a challenge, especially for several responsible persons.