SOME PRECAUTIONS

Wairarapa Times-Age, 10 March 1942, Page 4

SOME PRECAUTIONS

WHEN BOMBS ARE FALLING. ENGLISH DOCTOR'S ADVICE. In a letter to a Dunedin business man an English doctor has given an idea of the clanger of concussion through bursting bombs. He has outlined the following precautions to be taken against death or injury from concussion:— 1. Always have some cotton wool in your bag or in a small tin. Ram this quickly in your ears after you are in a shelter. (2) Keep your mouth open. Chew sweets or gum. Alternatively have a small square of india-rubber handy to place between the teeth to prevent the jaws closing. This precaution will prevent concussion which may burst the lungs in serious cases and permanently affect the hearing in less serious cases. 3. Do not lean against solid walls or partitions. Ground vibration after explosions of bombs 200 yards away can transmit “shock waves” powerful enough to stun or even kill a human being in contact with wall transmission. Air space acts as a buffer, and is flexible. Let it do its work. 4. Relax after local detonations for four or five minutes. Nobody is normal or fit to think immediately afternearby explosions. 5. If caught in open fields or wide roads and unable to reach shelter, lie down, but keep your head and shoulders off the ground. Concussion may choke you unless you remember this, even though you escape injury from blast or debris.