Lightning Facts & Tips
Lightning occurs with all thunderstorms. It averages 73 deaths and 300 injuries each year. This is more than tornadoes and floods combine. Most victims are struck while playing golf or field sports and while in or near water. Even if a storm is several miles away, you can still be struck. A bolt of lightning has a temperature of 50000° F. The super heating of the air as the charge passes through it, explodes the hydrogen atoms, and creates thunder. |
 (Photo by Jon Riggle of Fremont, Nebraska.) |
The average flash of lightning could light a 100-watt light bulb for more than three months. Lightning can and does strike the same place twice.
At any moment, there are 2,000 thunderstorms occurring around the world and as many as 100 bolts of lightning every second -- 8,640,000 per day and over 3 billion per year. Chances of being struck by lightning are over 2 million to one.
Here in Colorado, lightning is the number one life threatening weather hazard. Between 1959 and 1994, lightning killed 394 people.
Colorado ranks number 11 for lightning deaths in the United States.
Florida ranks first in the nation for lightning, with an average of 100 thunderstorm days per year. The lightning capitol of the world is the West coast of Africa, with as many as 295 thunderstorm days per year.
Lightning Safety Tips:
- If you feel your hair stand on end, drop to the ground in a crouched position, hands on knees. Do not lie flat on the ground.
- Avoid being the highest object in any area.
- Avoid hilltops, trees or telephone poles. In a forest, move under a growth of small trees.
- Stay away from water during a thunderstorm. Water conducts electricity.
- Get off or away from open water and metal equipment (golf cars, tractors, bicycles). Drop golf clubs and remove golf shoes. Keep several yards away from other people. In open areas, go to a low place like a ravine or valley.
- Stay indoors and away from windows during a storm.
- Inside a home, avoid using the phone and unplug unnecessary appliances.
- Watch for flash flooding.
- Many people apparently "killed" by lightning can be revived if quick action is taken.
- Learn mouth-to-mouth resuscitation and CPR. First aid given should be given to those not breathing within a few minutes.
- If you're affected by a lightning strike, see a physician immediately.
Other Lightning Resources
National Weather Service Lightning Safety
http://www.lightningsafety.noaa.gov/
Colorado Lightning Resource Center
http://www.crh.noaa.gov/pub/ltg.php
National Lightning Safety Institute
http://www.lightningsafety.com/