Ah yes- we all grew up in a Winter Wonderland illustrated so beautifully by Currier & Ives, Norman Rockwell, and other famous American folk artists. Now that we’re grown-ups, we can still enjoy winter but also understand that those icicles that look so charming on the front of Christmas cards can actually present a real threat to the safety and well-being of our families. If you are a business owner, you can be sued for injuries resulting from ice dams and their accompanying icicles. Lest you think these threats are an exaggeration, here are some very real dangers posed by icicles.
Injuries Big and Small
Yes, an icicle could impale a human being or poke out an eye and therefore be used as a weapon causing injury, but the most common harm caused by icicles are nothing out of a whodunit: rather, it is caused by the ice simply falling on an unsuspecting passerby. Children are most often hurt when they try to intentionally knock down these shards, not realizing that what they are doing is really dangerous!
Small injuries might include things such as abrasions, cuts, and bruises. But as you would expect, the bigger and heavier the icicles: the greater the chances of ending up with a much more serious injury.
Serious injuries include broken bones and even brain damage. Icicles can become virtual pillars when left to themselves, and some can weigh up to 50 pounds. If one of those monsters falls from just a single story high, it will inevitably cause a very tragic injury.
Death
In the first week of 2010, a woman in Russia was killed by a falling icicle as she walked along a sidewalk. These incidents, though rare, are nevertheless a very real threat. Icicles are attached to ice dams; and it is those ice dams slipping and falling off roofs that actually cause the most deaths. A slab of ice can easily weigh in the hundreds of pounds and will crush any human being unlucky enough to be in its path.
Romantic as icicles are, they are not the innocuous symbols of winter we thought they were when we were children. The very best defense against the threats from icicles and ice dams is to prevent them in the first place. Installing one of the many high-tech deicing solutions from Thermal Technologies will stop the development of these dangerous ice formations before they can get started. Contact Thermal Technologies today.

