Weekly First-aid Topic: Pay more attention when driving in rainy weather in summer
From:Beijing Municipal Health Commission
Date:07/14/2023

The rainfall in recent days has brought coolness, but also some safety risks, to the hot summer in Beijing.

The road is slippery in rainy days, drivers should be cautious about the following three points.

First, put on the brakes slowly. When driving in the rain, a "lubricant" of the tires is formed by the rain on the road, so that the friction of the brake disc of the car is significantly reduced. The adhesion between the tire and the ground is reduced, extending the braking distance greatly. Therefore, a certain safety distance should be maintained when driving. If you need to stop, you should try to slow down and apply the brakes in advance slowly, to ensure the enough emergency preparation time for the cars behind to avoid rear-end collision due to excessive braking.

Second, ensure the clear sight. While driving in heavy rain, the driver should ensure a good sight condition, by turning on the wipers in time, and the fog lights when the weather is dark. If the front windshield is foggy, it is necessary to turn on the air conditioner and blow the cold air into the front windshield. If the rear windshield is foggy, the driver could turn on the rear windshield heater to eliminate the fog as soon as possible.

Third, avoid pedestrians. Pedestrians with umbrellas in the rain will have a certain degree of decrease on their vision and hearing. They cannot respond to passing vehicles in time. Therefore, drivers should slow down in advance, honk their horns more, and avoid the pedestrians patiently.

In addition, rainfall brings a sudden drop in temperature, which is easy to excite the sympathetic nerve, causing capillary constriction, and increasing blood circulation resistance, blood pressure, heartbeats and blood viscosity. It is easily induce coronary heart disease, angina, myocardial infarction, etc. The elderly and children have weak resistance, decreased metabolic function, slowed blood circulation, making them sensitive to cold and hot weather changes. It is necessary to increase or decrease clothing in time.

Here are some tips from 120. During the alternating period from heat to cool, it is best to close the window before falling asleep to avoid catching a cold. It is suggested to have warm and soft food, instead of raw or cold food, so as to avoid digestive emergencies.