Welcome to Winter 2012!
 Who can forget the Arctic blast which transformed our sleepy hollow into the setting for the next Ice Age during the winter of 2010-11? (scroll down to see photo)
We shivered and chattered our way through the season with relatively few broken bones and bruises. But we cannot be complacent just because Christmas 2011 has been warm enough to put out sunscreen instead of cookies for Santa Claus. Set the new electronic gadgets aside a moment and prepare yourself for the return of the big chill...Winter 2012

Satellite weather images of the UK

 << Left image taken
      9 Dec 2010

 Right image taken >>
      25 Dec 2011
        at 14.06h

HEALTH HAZARDS
  We have more to fear this time of year than a slip on the ice!

FROSBITE: The effects of freezing winter weather can sneak up on you faster than a politician at election time! Unprotected skin, especially the face, ears, hands and feet,  at -20° can suffer frostbite in just 10 minutes or less!  Injury of the skin and underlying tissues can lead to necrosis. When the affected tissues die and cannot be saved, amputation is a common result. Would you know the signs, symptoms or treatment for frostbite if it bit you on the nose?

HYPOTHERMIA: The lowering of the body’s core temperature, usually due to being cold and possibly wet, in cold temperatures. Depending on your body mass, clothing, general condition, wind chill and exposure time, you can develop hypothermia at 50° if you are wet and unable to find shelter from bone chilling wind. So it should come as no surprise when every year we read about people found dead in the snow just steps from their own doorway. With ideal conditions favouring the weather, it is not inconceivable that a person can be rendered non-responsive within ten minutes of exposure. What factors determine your fitness to brave the elements, how do you recognize hypothermia, what should you do AND what should you NOT do if you suspect hypothermia?

HEART ATTACK & STROKE: The major cause of deaths in winter is not due to road accidents or falls, but heart attacks related to snow removal! Just last week the news started with the story of a man in who died shoveling his front walk. Before the end of the winter months, he will be just the first of many similar statistics. How could shoveling your walk be a threat to your life?  How would you know you were having a heart attack and what should you do?

FALLS, SLIPS & SLIDES:  It seems inevitable that you will experience at least one good fall during the snow and ice season. Whether it is outside walking on a slippery path or in your own home slipping on a floor wet with the melting snow from the bottom of your Wellie or your dog’s paws.  Knowing how to fall to reduce injury is always a benefit, but very often conditions do not allow for evasive maneuvers. How do you assess fall injuries, provide first aid and know when to seek help?

   Naturally we all know and observe the basics of how to drive in bad weather, what emergency supplies you should carry in your car, what emergency supplies you should have in your home, the basics of First Aid and the importance of keeping a current list of emergency contacts near your home phone and on your person when away from home. 

    But, considering the early season sampling of winter’s finest, it might be a good idea to review some of the essentials you need to know to survive winter’s worst.