Downed power line kills teenager something to think about while chasing

[Bill Hark]

This teenager was killed by a downed power line after a storm. After striking a downed power line in her car, it caught fire and when she got out, she was electrocuted. Something to think about when out chasing storms.

Article link for teenager killed by downed power line

 

[Dutch Jolien]

What a tragic accident. Its a good reminder to stay safe, but in her case it was really bad luck

 

[James K]

How terribly sad. She had no choice to get out.
Its something you could potentially do, but you'd basically have to jump out....the very important thing being you can't make contact with the car or the line (or anything else) when you make contact with the ground (actually there's a distance you can't even come within -based on voltage- because electricity can jump)

In an ideal situation, the system *should* detect a problem and cut power (sometimes with 2-3 re-trys before permanently cutting it). But ideal situation and *should* doesn't always equate to *will do it*.
Powerlines aren't something aren't something you want to f--- around with. always assume a line is live, even is it isn't sparking or buzzing. Even if it is dead, there is that re-try on fault mentioned above that could happen, there is also the fact someone farther down the line could manually switch it on (again something that shouldn't happen until the lines have been inspected, but you just never know).