On this day in 1967, The Canberra Times reported that Canberrans had been suffering through a shocking week, after abnormally low humidity in the city resulted in many citizens receiving shocks of static electricity.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
These electric shocks ranged from minor to moderately severe, and had been caused by objects such as door handles, chairs, and car doors having been charged with static electricity.
In 1967, Canberra's average humidity at 3pm was 39 per cent. The humidity in the capital city throughout the shock-filled week had sunk to below 30 per cent, with a low of 20 per cent. A Bureau of Meteorology spokesman said that when the humidity was at an average level, static electricity did not build up as much as in dry conditions and it did not concentrate.
Bureau staff were as uncomfortable as anyone else, receiving shocks throughout their work days from their chairs and door knobs. The electric shocks proved to be unavoidable, disrupting the daily routine of one married O'Connor couple.
The husband and wife were forced to abandon their usual afternoon kiss when the wife picked up her husband from work, having each received an electric shock while doing so.
While an after-work kiss might have been a nice habit the couple enjoyed, their marriage could bear a temporary halt in their routine - it was just not worth the zap.
