Which protective measure helps avoid a hand-to-hand current path?

• A. Standing on a dry rubber mat provides insulation.
• B. Wearing insulating gloves guarantees safety.
• C. Keeping one hand in your pocket while working inside equipment.
• D. Handling energized components with bare hands.

Answer: (C)

The main idea is that current travels through any available path between energized points, and a hand-to-hand path through the body can drive current across the chest. Keeping one hand in your pocket prevents a completed circuit between two hands, so there isn’t a second contact point for current to flow through your body. The dry rubber mat helps isolate you from the floor, which reduces risk from ground faults, but it doesn’t eliminate the possibility of a hand-to-hand path if you touch two live parts with both hands. Insulating gloves can help, but they aren’t foolproof—gloves can be damaged or imperfect seals can still allow current to find a path. Handling energized components with bare hands directly creates a path for current and is unsafe. Keeping one hand out of the circuit is the most reliable way to avoid a hand-to-hand current path.