To protect electrical equipment in the house during the storm season

This year's rainy season, many households in Thai Nguyen province suffered significant economic losses when a series of electrical equipment was damaged by lightning. This fact shows the need to raise awareness of lightning prevention in each family. Records in Gia Sang ward show that just one sudden lightning strike is enough to cause many households to lose tens of millions in a moment.

The family of Mr. Vu Duy Doan, group Huong Son 11, Gia Sang ward, had their rolling door motor broken due to the impact of the rain and thunder on the evening of August 5.

On the evening of August 5, a thunderstorm caused damage to many electrical devices of residents in the Gang Thep area.

Mr. Nguyen Dang Bac, Huong Son 11 group, Gia Sang ward, said: Before the rain, I turned off 3/5 of the house's circuit breakers, leaving only the power source for a few light bulbs and a fan. At around 9pm, when it started to rain again, a loud thunderclap rang out, the light bulb in front of the house fell and broke both the bulb and the bracket. Another light bulb behind the house, about 30m away, also burned out. Checking other equipment, I discovered that the rolling door and camera on another power line were also broken, although I had turned off the circuit breaker on this power line, but had not yet unplugged the power cord from the socket.

About 60m from Mr. Bac's house, Mr. Vu Duy Doan's family also had a broken camera eye and rolling door motor, estimated damage of about 4-5 million VND. About a month before, Mr. Nguyen Dang Thai's family, Huong Son 10 group, also had dozens of electrical devices damaged by lightning, estimated damage of about 30 million VND.

Mr. Nguyen Dang Thai recounted: Among the damaged electrical equipment (including: TV, industrial sewing machine, washing machine, camera, ceiling fan, electric meter, light bulb), the ceiling fan and camera were unplugged but still burned out; the other equipment, I still plugged into the power source. What was even more frightening was that 6 light bulbs and 1 camera eye in my house exploded like firecrackers. After that lightning, my family had to invest nearly ten million VND to build a lightning protection system. At the same time, the loss was tens of millions of VND, which was really a big loss for the family.

It is known that some households near Mr. Thai’s house also suffered damage to many of their electrical appliances during the recent lightning storm. Most of them were due to not turning off and unplugging the appliances from the power outlet.

According to some electricians and electronics repairmen in Gia Sang ward, during the rainy season, the number of electrical equipment damaged by lightning strikes increases. This year, the number of electrical equipment damaged by lightning strikes has increased significantly.

The rain and lightning on the evening of August 5 caused damage to many electrical equipment in some households in Gia Sang ward.

According to Mr. Nguyen Van Viet, a long-time electrician in Gia Sang ward, some electrical equipment often breaks down during the storm season, such as: electric fans, computers, televisions, cameras, rolling door motors, etc. Many households are still very subjective when it comes to lightning and rain, and still use electrical equipment.

Talking to us about this issue, Mr. Nguyen Anh Tuan, Director of the Thai Nguyen Province Hydrometeorological Station informed: In weather forecasts with thunderstorms and lightning, we always recommend that people turn off the circuit breaker, turn off and unplug all electrical equipment from the electrical system, even if the circuit breaker is installed to avoid short circuit and fire.

In addition, some other recommendations are also given by experts, that is, it is necessary to install a surge protection system. This is an effective measure to prevent excessive voltage from entering the electrical lines in the house. Do not use electrical equipment during thunderstorms, such as: turning on the TV, computer or charging the phone during heavy thunderstorms. It is necessary to periodically check the electrical system, such as grounding wire, circuit breaker, lightning protection device, etc.

Recent electrical equipment fires show that every citizen needs to raise awareness in preventing and combating natural disasters in general, and lightning in particular. Even when many families have unplugged the power, damage can still occur. This proves that the risk from lightning is not only in the main power line but can also spread through the surrounding environment. Therefore, investing in a standard lightning protection system for each family is not only a technical solution but also a "shield" to help protect their own family's assets.

Lightning is an unavoidable natural phenomenon, but damage from lightning can be completely minimized if proactively and properly prevented.

Source: https://baothainguyen.vn/thoi-su-thai-nguyen/202508/de-bao-ve-thiet-bi-dien-trong-nha-mua-mua-bao-8a15903/