Struck by lightning?

[Lefty]

Just found this story on our local bike forum:

Madras mourns farmer killed by lightning beneath tree | News - Home

While Cali rider and I were riding through some awesome lightning storms in the Sierra's last Sunday we had the discussion of how safe are we? Any of you had a close encounter?

 

[TownsendsFJR1300]

Just found this story on our local bike forum:

Madras mourns farmer killed by lightning beneath tree | News - Home

While Cali rider and I were riding through some awesome lightning storms in the Sierra's last Sunday we had the discussion of how safe are we? Any of you had a close encounter?

Florida is the lightning capitol of the world.

I've SEEN across the canal, TWO of my neighbors tall palms get hit (and died) of lightning. When still employed as a Police Officer many years ago, I was working an off duty security detail walking the ladies from the phone company to thier cars. This is from 5pm to midnight. On the west coast of Florida is when we get out lightning storms/rain, etc. A bolt of lightning struck maybe 100' away from me and one of my ladies.. HS!!! We we're ok, but we got the company car after that (its only used if absolutly necessary)

We've recently had two very young men, playing softball and baseball get struck and died from lightning.

The really bad thing is, the storm can be literally miles away but the lightning will travel that far away and still hit! That's what happened to these two young men.

SW Florida is currently putting up some very expensive, lightning detection gear just as a result of this. Similar to a tornado alert system.

If there is any doubt about lightning, I get cover... It'll pass sooon enough..

 

[PhotoAl]

Sad article, don't like reading about that happening to people. From what I've learned about lightning is IF you are in trees, take shelter under smaller trees, stand a few feet from the trunk with your back to the tree and your feet close together. Lightning does strange stuff. If it hits the tree it can blow bark off the trunk (why you stand with your back to the tree) and can run across the ground (stand with your feet together to minimize the potential difference between your feet). If you see someone who is struck by lightning it is possible that the electricity has caused their heart to stop. Check for a heartbeat and if one is not found start CPR.

 

[FinalImpact]

I was in that town this weekend picking up a truck for my son. We made it out just as the heavy hitters came in. While fueling I talked to another couple on a BMR from a local town near by and they said they were trying to beat the weather home.
That's a sad story for that couple as well as family and friends. My condolences to those hurting by this event.

A cell phone pic of the weather front over the weekend.

 

[FZ6 in Gresham]

Just found this story on our local bike forum:

Madras mourns farmer killed by lightning beneath tree | News - Home

While Cali rider and I were riding through some awesome lightning storms in the Sierra's last Sunday we had the discussion of how safe are we? Any of you had a close encounter?

Sad story not too far from home. RIP rider and my thoughts are with his wife.

 

[Motogiro]

Scary stuff! My thoughts are with the family.
I used to hook up one end of a flourescent lamp to an 80 meter half wave dipole antenna and the other to ground when I saw a lightening storm coming from miles away. Strikes that were over 1.5 a mile away lit the lamp just off the inductive kick from the electro magnetic pulse (EMP) My oldest son came in the room, looked around and asked what I was doing. When I answered him and he saw the lamp flash he ran down stairs and warned his mom and brothers.

lytehouse (Brenda) was struck once and it was a terrible experience.

 

[paperpirate]

my cousin who lives in south africa was struck by lightning along with his friend covering over the cricket field at a halt in play for rain. both survived but the lad he was with is still recovering mentally monts later, my cousing now has a scar running from his right foot up to his right shoulder where the lightning went through him

 

[Lefty]

my cousin who lives in south africa was struck by lightning along with his friend covering over the cricket field at a halt in play for rain. both survived but the lad he was with is still recovering mentally monts later, my cousing now has a scar running from his right foot up to his right shoulder where the lightning went through him

I'm sorry to hear about your cousin and his friend. I hope the both make a full recovery.

 

[SweaterDude]

I was at a golf camp and during a thunderstorm we were out on the porch. One of the other kids dared somebody to run out and touch a tree about 100' away. about 3 seconds later lightning struck a sign next to the putting green practice area. it was deafening! needless to say we went inside fairly hastily after that...

 

[deeptekkie]

My mother was struck by lightning while closing a car door. My daughter and I were struck by lightning while 20 feet underwater scuba diving. Hurts like heck!!!
No lasting affects for any of us though. No lasting affects for any of us though. No lasting affects for any of us though. No lasting affects for any of us though. No last

 

[paperpirate]

I'm sorry to hear about your cousin and his friend. I hope the both make a full recovery.

my cousin is fine apart from his scar now his friend is mostly therenow, just having to relearn somethings because his brain swelled up but they will both be fine :thumbup:

you got hit underwater! that sounds like it tickled!

 

[FinalImpact]

Three events viewed, one was pretty close!
I was standing on the deck watching the lightning hit across the valley (guess 4 miles out). To my surprise it hit telephone poll across the street and blew a power transformer into a smoking flaming bubbling mass. It was loud as hell!! I was 11 or so.

It was mid morning and we were falling trees in the woods on this hill. The skies were mostly clear but changing fast and getting dark miles out. My brother in-law was on a skidder dragging a log and I heard the skidder make a revving sound like never before and i turn to look (I was 15 feet away) and saw him bail off the thing. About this time I feel this strange tingling in my skin, the air thickened into a wall, my stocking cap with dew on it tingled, and I felt this static like tension. There was fog/mist coming through the standing trees towards the skidder which was the only serious mass of steel on the hill at the time. I recall looking back and it looked like glitter in the air just a few feet from the skidder. We both made a dash away from the skidder and within seconds lightning hit it!! That scared the wholly sh$t out of me!! We just keep running off the hill to his truck below. I'll never forget that ground level charge feeling. We both knew something bad was going down. I'd guess no more than 5 seconds elapsed from ground static feeling to ZAP! It was eerie... I was 22 at the time.

Another time I was working at an autoshop and power was knocked out. With the power out we couldn't work so i went outside under an awning to watch the lighting as it seemed to be getting closer. Across a 4 lane street was a power sub-station and the lighting touched down on this mast within the station. It was like starring at a welder and being in rock band all at once. Again, very loud "CRACK" that was super sharp. It was the same year as the logging incident.

Mother Nature FTW!

 

[Lefty]

Randy, remind me never to stand next to you during a thunderstorm!

 

[deeptekkie]

Totally Unrelated To Lightning:

I know a guy who was operating a cherry picker, (bucket truck), and got too close to some high-tension lines. 35,000 volts arced nearly ten feet over to his INSULATED bucket and ran through his body. It welded his metal watch band together so they had to cut it off with a grinder. It split, (and burned), his wrists and split and burned his ankles - yet he survived. He said that the docs told him that if it had not ran out of him at his ankles he would have died. I secretly knew that you wanted to hear this story. Now go to bed.

 

[TownsendsFJR1300]

Re: Totally Unrelated To Lightning:

I know a guy who was operating a cherry picker, (bucket truck), and got too close to some high-tension lines. 35,000 volts arced nearly ten feet over to his INSULATED bucket and ran through his body. It welded his metal watch band together so they had to cut it off with a grinder. It split, (and burned), his wrists and split and burned his ankles - yet he survived. He said that the docs told him that if it had not ran out of him at his ankles he would have died. I secretly knew that you wanted to hear this story. Now go to bed.

Getting off topic a bit, but when I was still working as PO, a guy (I didn't know him) in a cherry picker also , (installing new city street lights) got zapped from the high powered lines.

He wasn't so lucky, he literally had half his skull blown away. Dead before he hit the ground...

 

[Ssky0078]

Wow, after those last 2 posts I am not really feeling like my post counts for anything.

But, anyway, I was riding through Western CO in July and went through several lightning storms and torrential down falls. I just figure if that day was the day for me to go, then so be it, because I was having the time of my life. I also figure that the rubber would insulate me and make me a less likely candidate for the lightning to touch down on. Closest I came as I was coming around the corner of a lake I saw lightning hit about a 200 hundred yards away from me on the edge of another little pond close by. I could feel the tingle of electricity on my skin or maybe I was just scared, LOL.