Ken Springer
On January 25, 1978, an unusually severe blizzard struck Ohio, with temperatures in the single digits and wind gusts of 50 to 70 mph. The Ohio Department of Transportation shut down major interstate highways for three days due to snow drifts as high as 20 feet.
Janet, a sophomore at Ohio State University, decided to brave the wind and stinging cold by walking from her dormitory across campus to Long’s Book Store, less than a half mile away. She wore a warm jacket, gloves, and a woolen watch cap.
The fierce wind kept blowing her hat off, so Janet finally gave up and shoved the hat into the pocket of her jacket. When Janet arrived at the bookstore, her ear lobes were stinging, but she figured she would stay in the store long enough to warm her ears and fingers before returning to her dorm.
Janet noticed that her ears became numb as she walked back. Arriving at her dorm, she made hot tea for her and her roommate. The more her ears warmed up, the more pain she felt, so much so that she had a hard time sleeping that night.
Upon seeing her the following morning, Janet’s roommate told her that her ear lobes were blackish-blue and suggested they get to the campus clinic. In Janet’s relatively brief time outdoors, her ear lobes had developed frostbite.
Janet lost about a half inch of flesh from both ears through autoamputation, which included managing pain and infection while allowing the body to reject the dead tissue. Although a minor disfigurement, Janet could cover her ears with her hair, which is much better than losing her nose, fingers or toes.
Compared to our fellow mammals, humans are a sorry lot in our natural state. In our nakedness, we have little protection from climatic extremes. Until at least the advent of agriculture, we were lean and bereft of hair, leaving little to ward off the big chill of the Ice Age, and yet, we successfully survived. Humans took a different evolutionary path that led to much larger brains. Our brains led to clothing and fire making.
Frostbite is another common cold-induced and insidious injury; it can creep up on us rapidly with devastating results. Frostbite, or congelation, is caused when the fluids around the cells freeze, damaging the cell’s function. Damage to tissue from frostbite may be superficial, affecting only the outer layers of skin or extending into the deeper structures.
Author’s Note: Many people claim, or unwittingly believe, they have suffered from frostbite. The very definition of frostbite denotes necrosis of tissue, generally skin; if you didn’t lose skin, you didn’t suffer frostbite. However, congratulations are due because you prevented frostbite through your actions. Give yourself a pat on the back, or more accurately, your brain.
The body parts most commonly frostbitten are ears, chin, nose, fingers and toes. Early symptoms of frostbite include a burning or itching sensation, although there may not be pain in the early stages. The skin takes on a white or yellowish caste.
In more severe cases of frostbite, the skin turns reddish-purple, and in advanced stages of tissue damage, it turns black. With deep tissue damage, amputation is required to prevent infection.
First aid for frostbite in the field or workplace should consist of rewarming the affected body part with warm water (105 degrees F) or warm packs. Do not rub the injured part with snow – as some used to believe. This is an “old wives’ tale” and will only cause further damage to the tissue.
(Am I allowed to say old wives’ tale? After all, I wouldn’t want to offend any old wives out there; many of them are friends.)
Avoid direct contact with dry heat from a portable heater, furnace or gasoline engine, as this may cause burns on top of frostbite, a double whammy.
If the victim is far from medical help and there is a chance that a warmed body part will be re-frozen on the way, keep the part frozen to avoid more profound tissue damage caused by secondary freezing. Once again, alcohol often plays a part in the scenario of frostbite cases, so avoid drinking when the environmental conditions dictate otherwise.
Clothing is our best voluntary defense against the dangers of cold stress. A wide variety of lightweight and efficient clothing, such as artificial fleece and Gore-Tex, uses modern technology to provide comfort and protection.
Some clothing schemes provide a more significant advantage than others. For several reasons, mountain climbers have long known that the layering system provides the best protection in changing environmental conditions.
This system consists of a layer of clothing next to the skin that allows perspiration to “wick” through the fabric, thereby keeping the skin dry. Long underwear made of polypropylene or a similar material will do nicely.
The next layer should provide plenty of dead air space. Air is a poor conductor of heat, so the more dead air space, the more insulation.
What provides dead-air space? Shirts, wool sweaters, down, or synthetic-filled vests will go a long way in keeping you warm. Pay attention to wool’s critical quality—it will still provide considerable insulation, even when wet.
Finally, the outer layer should provide a wind-proof, water-resistant shell to keep the inner layers dry and reduce the convective and conductive heat loss caused by wind and wet clothing.
Pay attention to the head covering. A large percentage of heat is lost from the back of the neck and head, sometimes called the “stovepipe effect.” Thick watch caps, ski masks, parka hoods and balaclavas will do the trick.
Add layers of socks, cold-weather boots, and gloves, and you’re equipped to fight the cold, which is trying to rob you of your life-sustaining body heat.
The best defense against cold or heat injuries is our brain. Proper clothing and understanding our body’s marvelous physiological responses to temperature extremes are no substitute for exercising common sense, so only go out there if you are adequately prepared.
The insidious thing about cold injuries, including hypothermia and frostbite, is that we don’t always realize we are entering dangerous territory until it’s too late.
In closing, I suggest a Christmas gift for someone you care about that may save their life.
In last week’s article on hypothermia, I related the story of a young mother whose car slid off a rural road and into a ditch in blizzard conditions. Unfortunately, she left her car with a full gas tank behind and headed for a farmhouse some distance away, dying shortly from acute hypothermia in an open cornfield.
She could have stayed in her car and started it intermittently to stay adequately warm. She would have survived her ordeal if she had a cold-weather survival kit, such as the one I am about to describe which anyone can make.
First, you’ll need a plastic storage container or bag to hold the necessary items and one you can put in the vehicle during winter. What you put in the kit should include the following essential items to prevent hypothermia and frostbite.
Sleeping bag or blanket, consider wool or synthetic fleece.
Thick gloves or mittens.
Head covering such as a watch cap or balaclava.
Heavy socks, again, use wool, synthetics or a blend.
Energy or granola bars, something that has a lot of calories.
First aid kit, one that has a space blanket. These reflective sheets will help reduce convective and conductive heat loss.
Flashlight
Hand warmers – they have them for hands, feet, and lower back.
A warm jacket.
There is no need to mention cell phones as they are already ubiquitous, and most people keep them close at hand.
I always take a large thermos of hot water on winter trips. A hot drink on a chilly day always helps to warm up your tummy, and that’s a step in the right direction unless it contains alcohol. Once you get home and start the fire, then imbibe.
Factoid for the season: A chionophile is someone who loves cold weather. There are more of us than you may think—visit Snowshoe sometime this winter.
Stay warm and have a wonderful holiday season,
Ken Springer
Ken1949bongo@gmail.com