Saved by my iPod: Girl survives lightning
strike after wire diverts 300,000 volts
By Daily Mail Reporter Last updated at 7:48 PM on 19th June 2009
A teenage girl survived a terrifying lightning strike after she was saved by the wire of her
iPod. Schoolgirl Sophie Frost and her boyfriend Mason Billington, both 14, stopped to
shelter under a tree when a storm struck as they were walking near their homes. Doctors
believe Sophie survived the 300,000-volt surge only because it travelled through the
gadget’s wire, diverting it away from her vital organs.
Scorched: Sophie Frost, 14, shows what happened to
her clothes when she and her boyfriend Mason
Billington were struck by lightning. The teenager was
taken to hospital and is recovering from burns to her
chest and legs while Mason suffered damage to his eyes.
Both are expected to make a full recovery and Sophie
may not even have a permanent scar.
Sophie, on her hospital bed, said she was saved by
headphone wires diverting the bolt away from her body.
She will be thankful she was wearing her iPod, which
she had been given four days earlier as a gift from her
grandmother. Returning from hospital yesterday after
three days of treatment, she said: ‘I’m just glad to be
alive. I don’t remember a thing about what happened,
but from what everyone tells me it’s a miracle I’m still
here. ‘Everybody’s said the iPod must have diverted the lightning away from my body,
which probably saved my life. I’ve got a few burns, but it’s all healing OK.’
Sophie and Mason were knocked unconscious by the lightning bolt while holding hands
and taking shelter in a field on Monday night.
Mason came round and carried Sophie, who was scorched and unconscious, to a nearby
road where he flagged down a female motorist who took the couple to Southend hospital.
The iPod had been bought by Sophie's grandmother only a few
days before the lightning strike.
Sophie suffered burns to her body and legs, some temporary
damage to her eyes and a perforated eardrum.
Dr. Ian Cotton, a reader in electrical engineering at Manchester
University, said Sophie could have been saved by her iPod.
‘If lightning hits a person it can do one of two things. It can go
down the outside of the skin, which is more likely if someone is caught in a storm and
their body is wet.
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‘Or it can puncture the skin and go into the body. Potentially a metal wire, which is
highly conductive could divert the electricity away from the heart and save someone’s
life.’
Sophie was reunited with her boyfriend and family in Rayleigh, Essex, yesterday after
being transferred to the Broomfield Hospital for burns treatment.
She said Mason, whose eyesight is now back to normal, was a hero. ‘My mum thinks
he’s wonderful,’ she added.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1194120/Saved-iPod-Girl-survives-lightning-strike-wirediverts-300-000-volts.html
Comprehension Questions: Refer back to the article and your notations to
answer. Write responses in complete sentences.
1. How many volts was the lightning strike that hit Sophie?
2. Where were Sophie and Mason when the lightning struck?
3. Explain: Why does the article include pictures of Sophie and Mason’s
clothing? How does this benefit the article?
4. How did the IPod interact with the lightning bolt?
5. Dr. Ian Cotton says that lightning can do two things when it hits. What
are those two things?
6. Define: What does “divert” mean?
7. Recall: How long was Sophie in the hospital?
8. Summarize and describe Sophie’s injuries.
Margin Notes: Show
Understanding of article
by marking, questioning,
and commenting.