It comes down to a combination of vulnerability and behavior, according to John Jensenius, the NWS lightning safety specialist and warning coordination meteorologist who conducted the analysis. Men typically find themselves in situations that heighten their vulnerability, Jensenius said.
From 2006 through 2021, there were 444 lightning strike deaths in the United States. Males are four times more likely than females to be struck by lightning.
Dear Billy, In the United States, males account for about 85 percent of lightning-strike fatalities and females only 15 percent. It's not because lightning prefers to strike men, but because men tend to engage in activities that put them at greater risk. For example, outdoor work being male dominated is a major factor.
Lightning can strike anyone, but certain groups may be more at risk. Almost 1 out of 4 lightning strike victims are aged 15 through 24.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) calls Florida the "lightning capital of the country" because it's the state with the most lightning-related deaths in the U.S. In fact, the corridor from Tampa Bay to Titusville was dubbed "Lightning Alley" by the National Weather Service (NWS) because it experiences ...
Remember the phrase, “When thunder roars, go indoors.” Find a safe, enclosed shelter when you hear thunder. Safe shelters include homes, offices, shopping centers, and hard-top vehicles with the windows rolled up. Seek shelter immediately, even if caught out in the open.
If your hair stands on end, lightning is about to strike you. Drop to your knees and bend forward but don't lie flat on the ground. Wet ground is a good conductor of electricity.
Risk Factors for Lightning Strikes
A UQ mathematician, Professor Peter Adams, calculated that Australians have a 1 in 12,000 chance of being struck by lightning, which is more than 650 times the chance of winning the Lotto, which is one in eight million.
In the United States, the lifetime odds of being struck by lightning are only 1 in 15,300. In any given year, those odds increase to about 1 in 1.2 million. Interestingly enough, most people survive. If you are struck by lightning the chance of it being fatal is only 1 in 10, a 90% survival rate.
Common injuries caused by lightning include: muscle pains, broken bones, cardiac arrest, confusion, hearing loss, seizures, burns, behavioral changes, and ocular cataracts. Loss of consciousness is very common immediately after a strike.
The heat produced when lightning moves over the skin can produce burns, but the current moving through the body is of greatest concern. While the ability to survive any lightning strike is related to immediate medical attention, the amount of current moving through the body is also a factor.
Even worse, a lightning strike can cause a cardiac arrest, which stops the body from circulating blood and injures the brain and nervous system. It can also cause respiratory arrest, preventing a victim from breathing. This can lead to brain hemorrhages and strokes. A Lichtenberg figure that resembles a lightning burn.
Surviving a lightning strike
Although the vast majority of lightning strike victims survive, the effects can be serious and long-lasting. Survivors have experienced debilitating injuries, burns and ongoing disability, including symptoms like seizures and memory loss.
When You See Lightning, Count The Time Until You Hear Thunder. If That Is 30 Seconds Or Less, The Thunderstorm Is Close Enough To Be Dangerous – Seek Shelter (if you can't see the lightning, just hearing the thunder is a good back-up rule). Wait 30 Minutes Or More After The Lightning Flash Before Leaving Shelter.
Most houses are filled with many potential routes for lightning to follow in its journey. This can include gas and water pipes, electric lines, phone lines, cable TV/internet lines, gutters, downspouts, metal window frames - anything conductive in a house is 'fair game' for the lightning to follow.
When lightning strikes, most of electrical discharge occurs near the water's surface. Most fish swim below the surface and are unaffected. Although scientists don't know exactly just how deep the lightning discharge reaches in water, it's very dangerous to be swimming or boating during a thunderstorm.
If you stay in the water, you could try to go deep, but it's unlikely you can hold your breath for long enough to avoid the danger." Fish, which usually move around at greater depths, are safer than human swimmers.
The Golden Bolt award, for the most prolific lightning activity, goes to the western Top End and northern Kimberley. During Australia's northern wet season, this region sees huge amounts of moisture and instability, while sea breezes act as a trigger for storms on a near-daily basis.
Thunderstorms are most frequent over the northern half of the country, and generally decrease southward, with lowest frequencies in southeast Tasmania. A secondary maximum is also apparent in southeast Queensland and over central and eastern New South Wales, extending into the northeastern Victorian highlands.
In a year, Weatherzone estimates Darwin experiences 54 lightning pulses per square kilometre — making it the most lightning-prone capital city in Australia.
Just before lightning actually strikes, static energy is going to fill the air. If you look at your arms, you may see the hair on your arms standing on end. You may also feel a physical tingling sensation throughout your body, especially in your extremities.
So, what's going on here? An electric charge builds up as part of a "positive lightning strike." The charge is what makes your hair stand up. You may not think you're in trouble if the storm looks to still be off in the distance. But that electric charge is a sure sign that you should get inside as quickly as possible.
Lightning can jump through windows, so keep your distance from them during storms! The second way lightning can enter a building is through pipes or wires. If the lightning strikes utility infrastructure, it can travel through those pipes or wires and enter your home that way.
Like trees, houses, and people, anything outside is at risk of being struck by lightning when thunderstorms are in the area, including cars. The good news though is that the outer metal shell of hard-topped metal vehicles does provide protection to those inside a vehicle with the windows closed.
If you are caught out in thunder and lightning it is advised that you wind up the windows and stay inside your car. This is because in the vast majority of cars with a metal roof and frame, the frame will act as a conductive Faraday cage, passing the current around the passengers inside and on to the ground.