National Lightning Safety Awareness week: Why it’s important

WEST MONROE, La. (KTVE/KARD) —

National Lightning Safety Awareness week was this week, June 23rd-29th, 2024. Although we are not actively seeing any storms in the Ark-La-Miss right now, lightning safety is still important to talk about.

National Lightning Safety Awareness week was started back in 2001 to help bring awareness and reduce the number or deaths and injuries to this very underrated killer. Before this national week was started there was around 60 deaths per year, but after 2001 the deaths have slowly dropped where there are only around 20 deaths per year now.

Lightning is formed from the interaction with positive and negative charges in the clouds and on the ground. The charges in the clouds are created by collisions from water and ice particles. The charges then separate themselves as the positive charges go up and the negative charges go down. The positive and negative charges on the ground interact with the charges in the clouds and when the energy between them becomes too great, a discharge of that energy happens and lighting is formed.

All types of lightning can occur from cloud to cloud lightning, intra cloud lightning, and the most dangerous cloud to ground lightning. Positively charged lightning, usually from the top of cloud, can occur and can be more dangerous than the negatively charged lightning.

Most cloud to ground lightning tends to strike the tallest and closest object, no matter the material of that object. Avoid standing in an open field and being on the water as you could become the tallest object. Water and metal objects are also conductors of electricity and could be very dangerous to hold or be in while in a thunderstorm.

Although standing under a tree seems like a good option as you won’t be the tallest object it is just as dangerous to be under a tree. Dr. Kristin Calhoun, a Research Scientist for the National Severe Storms Laboratory explains a little about ground currents.

In general lightning looks for the highest point, but that’s not always true, and actually most the injuries that we hear of is actually because of ground current. So that means if you’re standing near a tree, the tree gets struck by lightning, current goes through the trend goes through the ground and comes back up through you.

Dr. Kristin Calhoun | a Research Scientist for the National Severe Storms Laboratory

Being prepared and looking at the forecast could help you keep your plans but move them around to a better time in the day away from the storms.

Just being prepared to have a course of action if storms do come up during your day. So I’m not saying people to totally change their activities for the day, but know what they’ll do and have a plan.

Dr. Kristin Calhoun | a Research Scientist for the National Severe Storms Laboratory

However if you do get stuck outside while during a storm, whether it’s at the beach, hiking, fishing, or any other activities it is important to find a fully enclosed area like a building or car.

The best plan of action is to find shelter. So a shelter in this case, is something that’s completely enclosed, so any kind of home structure or a car is a great structure to be in during a storm.

Dr. Kristin Calhoun | a Research Scientist for the National Severe Storms Laboratory

If you want to see more information about lightning, how they work and other safety tips, you can visit the National Weather Service here or the National Lightning Safety Councils Website here.

As always stay weather aware and if you hear thunder roar, go indoors.