I’ve read that when someone is having a heat stroke just making them wet isn’t enough, you have to ventilate them so the water vaporazes, cooling them. But why does water vaporizing cools something?
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I don’t think anyone here is answering the heart of your question. The important thing about treating someone from heat stroke is to cool them down. The reason getting them wet isn’t enough is the same reason that being sweaty is either refreshing or makes your hot situation worse. Moisture conducts heat, it can trap heat in, or conduct heat away, the difference is whether there is wind or ventilation. If there is no wind, you’re just trapping heat in. If there is wind, the wind takes the heat from the water on the skin, and the water quickly takes the heat from the skin. Rinse and repeat this and you have a rapidly cooling cycle that is a much more efficient heat transfer than either just blowing air over skin or dumping water on skin.
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