With summer heat and moisture in the atmosphere, that means pop-up thunderstorms are going to be more common in the coming weeks—and it is National Lightning Safety Awareness Week to remind people to stay safe.Â
Lightning is often forgotten in the list of hazards that spawn from thunderstorms, especially when people have to worry about giant hail or tornadoes, but the National Weather Service in Paducah is saying you shouldn’t think it couldn’t happen to you. Everyone has heard about how rare lightning strikes are—and they are, but since 2010, 331 people were struck by lightning and killed in the United States.
All of those occurred when folks were outdoors when a thunderstorm was nearby, and often times, lightning strikes can occur quite far from where the main body of a storm develops.
Warning Coordination Meteorologist Christine Wielgos says there are a lot of myths surrounding lightning that people still believe, so they’re looking to educate as much as possible.
Wielgos says many people wait too long to get to a safe place when they see a storm approaching, and then often go back outside too soon before the threat is over.
The National Weather Service will be posting information about lightning through the week, and you can head online to weather.gov to see that same information.