Lightning Kills - Play It Safe

By Lisa Young, MS, CHES
Health Educator
U.S. Army Center for Health Promotion and Preventive Medicine

In the United States, lightning hits the ground about 40 million times a year, and for the last 40 years has been the second largest storm killer. According to the National Weather Service Publication, approximately 100 people are killed and another 300 are injured by lightning each year. Farmers, golfers, and fisherman are killed most frequently by lightning.

Lightning occurs with all thunderstorms although it is not always visible and is most common in the summer months and in warm moist climates. Lightning is created as a discharge of built-up energy when the difference between the positive ground charges and negative charges in the cloud overcomes the resistance effects of the air. Thunder is the sound of the shock wave produced by the rapidly expanding hot gases that surround the lightning bolt.

Lightning can strike 5 to 10 miles away from the center of the storm. Many victims are struck as the current moves in and along the ground. To determine the location of the thunderstorm, count the number of seconds between the flash and the rumble of a clap of thunder, and then divide the number by five. This is approximately the number if miles away the thunderstorm is centered. A person that can hear thunder is in the lightning-strike zone and precautions should be taken immediately.

Many injuries can be prevented with proper education, lightning protection systems, appropriate shelters for safety, and lightning safety plans for coaches, parents, and referees at sporting events. Adults are always responsible for the safety and injury prevention of children in their care.

Lightning Safety Tips:

1. Find shelter, with the best place being a building - a car is not safer than a building.
2. If outside, get into a low-lying area without water.
3. Have the least contact with the ground as possible - squat low to the ground with head between the knees and hands on knees.
4. Don't crouch next to anything tall, since lightning hits objects that rise up from the ground.
5. Stay away form anything metal, like golf clubs, bats, fishing rods, or umbrellas.
6. If indoors - stay away from windows and doors; do not use telephones, shower or bathe, or wash dishes - water, electrical wires, and metal pipes conduct electricity!
7. Wait at least 30 minutes after the last clap of thunder before leaving shelter.

Source: For immediate release PR 20-04. PUBLIC AFFAIRS OFFICE, U.S. ARMY CENTER FOR HEALTH PROMOTION AND PREVENTIVE MEDICINE ABERDEEN PROVING GROUND, MARYLAND 21010-5403. For more information, call 410-436-2088/800-222-9698/FAX 410-436-4784.