How do you keep safe from lightning during Tampa Bay’s thunderstorms?

Thunderstorms roll through Tampa Bay during summer months like clockwork: Sometime usually between 4 and 7 p.m., dark clouds form, rain pours down, thunder claps — and lightning strikes.

Florida sees millions of strikes a year. On Thursday evening, four teens were struck by lightning while standing under a banyan tree in downtown St. Petersburg. A building under construction in the city was hit earlier this week.

Forecasters say to seek shelter indoors when lightning is present. But is there more to know? Are you safe in your car? Can you take a shower?

We checked with experts to find out.

When are you at risk of getting hit by lightning?

“When thunder roars, go indoors,” according to one of the National Weather Service’s safety campaigns.

Which is “pretty simple and straightforward,” said Rick Davis, a meteorologist at Tampa Bay’s weather service office. “If you hear thunder, you need to get inside. Period.”

Even if a storm looks a good bit in the distance, research shows lightning can strike from up to 10 miles away, Davis said. Lightning is the first hazard to arrive and the last to leave, according to weather experts.

“We get people on the beaches that are either struck or near misses many times,” Davis said. They hold out too long and the danger increases. “Unfortunately, things like this can happen.”

How does lightning travel?

Lightning spiders across a surface until it gets grounded. And bolts don’t strike in a straight line; they have stepped leaders, or “little branches,” that can flash off to the side as they approach the ground, Davis said.

For instance, if you’re standing under a tree that gets struck by lightning, the bolts will travel across the top of the tree and underneath it.

Lightning will “go pretty far” if it hits a highly conductive surface, like metal or chain-link fences, Davis said. Eventually, the electricity will dissipate.

Are certain shelters safer than others?

The safest location to avoid being struck by lightning is in a grounded structure with a roof and four walls, Davis said.

Structures with plumbing and electrical wiring conduct electricity more efficiently than the human body, according to forecasters.

A picnic pavilion? No. Carports? No. Dugouts? No. Trees? No. Side flashes can go underneath and strike whatever’s there.

A car? Yes, as long as the windows are rolled up. The metal of the car acts as a shell. If the window is open, the lightning can get inside, Davis said.

Being in the water also isn’t a safe spot, whether it’s the Gulf of Mexico or a pool. While lightning doesn’t go under the water, it spreads out on the surface. “You can still feel the impacts or become incapacitated,” Davis said.

Lightning also can hit nearby boats and electrocute fish near the surface, according to federal forecasters.

Can you shower and use the bathroom?

It depends.

What type of piping does your house have? Older homes with copper or metal pipes are more at risk of conducting electricity than homes with PVC pipes. And you shouldn’t touch metal faucets or shower heads when lightning is near, Davis said.

Still, to be the most cautious, it’s best to avoid taking showers and baths during thunderstorms.

Are there different types of lightning strikes?

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration outlines multiple ways people can be hit by lightning.

Direct strike. While these strikes are not the most common, they’re potentially the most deadly and mostly occur when people are in open areas.

Side flash or side splash. These generally occur when a person is within a foot or two of the struck object, like under a tree. The lightning strikes a taller object and a portion of the current jumps to the victim.

Ground current. When lightning strikes an object, much of the energy travels along the ground surface. If a person is walking close by, the current can enter the body from the ground up. These types of strikes cause the most lightning casualties.

Conduction. While metal doesn’t attract lightning, bolts can travel long distances in wires and other metal surfaces.

What happens when lightning strikes a human?

Lightning is hotter than the surface of the sun, reaching temperatures around 50,000 degrees Fahrenheit, according to federal weather officials. When lightning strikes a person, they can experience cardiac arrest and brain damage. About 10% of people who are struck by lightning are killed. The remaining 90% are left with various degrees of disability.

While Lake Maracaibo, Venezuela, is the lightning capital of the Western Hemisphere, according to NASA, Florida is the lightning capital of the U.S. The state led the country in lightning density, according to a recent report by a company that tracks global lightning strikes.

Florida averages seven deaths from lightning strikes each year, according to Florida State University’s emergency management department.

So far in 2024, two lightning fatalities have occurred in the state, according to federal data. Nationwide, the number is six.