oh my god.........

by pat stevens
(ottwawa, ont, canada)

Last night, I was outside and there was no wind but when I got out there it hit me so hard, I fell over and I was knocked out. Now I am in my bed with 6 broken ribs. One hit my stomach and a broken neck. It is very hard for me to type this to you, all of you, but I wanted for all of you to know that in the Ottawa area it is very dangerous.

Barry's Response - Pat:

Sorry to hear about your injuries. Hope your recovery goes well. Weather delivers us some surprises sometimes.

Wind and weather can lead to a variety of physical traumas. Some, such as you incident reported above, arising from loss of balance and control, falls and impacts. This can have especially severe consequences if wind picks up and throws you against the ground or other solid object.

Another injury comes from flying debris. They may cause blunt injuries and, if fast and small enough, penetrating injuries. Hail is a prime example of the kind of debris associated with storms, but in tornadoes, anything is possible, including vehicles.

Speaking of vehicles another set of injuries occurs indirectly, such as loss of control while driving in a storm resulting in a crash. Also, flooding resulting from weather activity may lead to traumatic incidents.

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