Antenna Static Shock?

[safetyobc]

I work for a fire dept in South Arkanasas. Our "base" radio is actually a Motorola mobile VHF-High band radio just like we use in our trucks, it is just mounted in our day room. I decided to buy an adapter that fits the male plug coming from our external antenna (which is just a mobile antenna mounted on top of the fire house) and connect it to my scanner. The antenna isn't amplified or anything, just a regular antenna connected to a regular moto radio. (I use another radio to monitor our channel while I am scanning.) Let me tell you, reception is great. I'm picking up stations almost 40 miles away! After it was connected for about 30 minutes I was going to hook everything back the way it was, when I touched my scanner "POW" I got a static shock. Kinda like when you rub your feet on the carpet just to shock your wife. It was a pretty significant shock, for static anyway. My question is, what caused this? Is it safe for my scanner? I would hate to blow up my little BC250D just to listen to distant channels. Could this just be coincidence? Thanks in advance for any info.

 

[K2KOH]

What you need to do is get a static discharge unit for the coaxial cable. Put it in line, and then run a ground wire from the screw on the unit to a good ground. Static discharge can destroy the radio; amateur operators have these units in line with their coax cables to prevent the receiver from becoming toast. Aside from near lightning strikes and surges, static electricity can build up on an antenna on a dry, windy day...and even during a snow storm.