Lightning is a serious danger. Summer is the peak season for this deadly weather phenomenon, with
Florida being the “lightning capital of North America”. With an average of almost 1.4 million cloud-toground lightning strikes each year and typically leading the nation in lightning deaths and injuries,
learning about lightning and its dangers, as well as important safety measures, can greatly reduce
your risk from being affected by lightning.
The National Weather Service has declared June 22-28, 2014 as National Lightning Safety
Awareness Week.
Friday’s topic is the medical aspects of lightning.
According to the National Weather Service, over the last 30 years the U.S. has averaged 51 reported
lightning fatalities per year, with estimated additional 600-700 lightning strike survivors each year.
However, because lightning claims one or two victims at a time, it is an underrated risk.
Only about 10% of people who are struck by lightning are killed, leaving about 90% with various
degrees of disability. While any death is tragic and devastating, injuries can be equally tragic to the
family. In addition to the pain and mental anguish of the victim and the victim’s family, the incident
may lead to a loss of income and medical expenses for treatment may drain a family’s assets.
4 Ways Lightning Strikes People
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Direct Strike--A person struck directly by lightning becomes a part of the main lightning discharge
channel. Most often, direct strikes occur to victims who are in open areas. Direct strikes are not as
common as the other ways people are struck by lightning, but they are potentially the most deadly.
Side Flash--A side flash occurs when lightning strikes a taller object near the victim and a portion
of the current jumps from taller object to the victim. In essence, the person acts as a “short circuit”
for some of energy in the lightning discharge. Side flashes generally occur when the victim is
within a foot or two of the object that is struck.
Ground Current--When lightning strikes a tree or other object, much of the energy travels
outward from the strike in and along the ground surface. Anyone outside near a lightning strike is
potentially a victim of ground current. Because the ground current affects a much larger area than
the other causes of lightning casualties, the ground current causes the most lightning deaths and
injuries.
Conduction--Lightning can travel long distances in wires or other metal surfaces. Metal does not
attract lightning, but it provides a path for the lightning to follow. Most indoor lightning casualties
and some outdoor casualties are due to conduction.
It is important that people be prepared and
knowledgeable about thunderstorms and lightning
in order to protect themselves and families.
Floridians need to be especially aware, as Florida
typically leads the nation in lightning strikes and
deaths each year, with an average about 6 deaths
and 60 injuries directly due to lightning.
2007 was a particularly tragic year in Florida as
far as lightning casualties are concerned. A total
of 11 people were killed from lightning strikes and
an additional 29 were injured. These 11 deaths
were the most in any one year in Florida since
1995. Despite being the “Lightning capital of the
United States”, most of these casualties could’ve been prevented by using simple, smart safety tips.
2008 and 2009 claimed less lives with 4 and 5 deaths, respectively, and only 1 lightning death was
recorded in 2010 and 2011. This might have been an indication that more people were heeding safety
advice, but more education can be done until the count is down to 0. However, in 2012, Florida
lightning fatality numbers increased again, recording 5 lightning deaths in 2012 and 4 in 2013. So far
this year, Florida has already experienced 4 lightning fatalities.
Nationwide odds of being killed or
injured by lightning are about 1 in
960,000 for each year of your life.
Assuming a life span of 80 years,
that’s lifetime odds of 1 in 12,000. If
you are aware of all the threats posed
by lightning and act accordingly, your
chance for being struck will be
considerably lower.
If someone is struck by lightning, it is
important that they receive the
appropriate
immediate
medical
attention to save the person’s life.
Lightning victims do not carry an
electrical charge and are safe to
handle. If possible, move the victim to
a safer place. Do not let the rescuers
become lightning victims as lightning
CAN strike the same place twice.
Have someone call 9-1-1. Check to
see that the victim is breathing and
has a pulse. Almost all lighting strike
deaths result because CPR was not
started quickly enough. CPR should
be continued until the patient begins
to breath on their own, until a
qualified medical provider arrives, or
until you cannot continue due to
exhaustion. Cardiac arrest and
irregularities, burns and nerve
damage are common where people are struck by lightning. However, with proper treatment, including
CPR if necessary, most victims survive a lightning strike.
The next step would be to discover any other injuries that might have occurred because of the force
of the lightning strike. In many situations, this might include broken bones or possible head injuries
resulting from a fall. Stabilize any broken limbs using splints. Check the entire body for bleeding, and
apply pressure to control the loss of blood. The four levels of treatment for bleeding include applying
direct pressure to the site of the wound, elevating the wound if it is located on an extremity, applying
pressure to a pressure point above the site of the wound, and finally, if all else fails, apply a
tourniquet. Once you have finished controlling the immediate medical concerns, you should begin
treating the patient for shock and preparing them for transport to an emergency medical facility. Treat
for shock by elevating the feet of the patient and keeping them warm. They will most likely be
confused and have some muscular control issues. They also will often have hearing loss because the
tympanic membrane (eardrum) ruptures. Although lightning strikes are considered burns, there is
very little that needs to be done at the scene for burns. In most cases, the only burns that will occur
are to areas where metal is worn, such as a belt buckle or necklace.
Mentally, lightning strike victims may face many challenges that they will have to live with for the rest
of their lives. When the brain is affected by lightning, the person most often has difficulty with
memory, multitasking, and processing new information. Early on, survivors may complain of intense
headaches, ringing in the ears, dizziness, nausea and other post-concussion symptoms. Survivors
may also experience balance issues, muscle soreness, pain in the back or in an extremity. Longer
term symptoms may include processing new information or accessing old information, slowed
reaction time, distractibility, irritability, personality change, chronic pain, insomnia, and depression.
Family and friends of lightning strike victims must remain supportive even though it may require an
adjustment in their relationship. An organization of tremendous help to survivors, families, physicians
and other professionals is Lightning Strike and electric Shock Survivors International (LSESSI), a
support group. LSESSI can be reached at http://www.lightning-strike.org/. Read lightning strike
survivor stories at http://www.lightningsafety.noaa.gov/survivors.htm.
Prevention is the key.
Although the National Weather Service does not issue specific
lightning warnings, products such as the Hazardous Weather
Outlook, Short Term Forecast, Special Weather Statements, and
Severe Thunderstorm Warnings give information on potentially
deadly lightning in your area. These products can be found at on
the National Weather Service website at www.weather.gov or
through NOAA All-Hazards Radio.
In addition, recent advances in cell phone application technology
can now make it easier to track lightning in your area or even give
lightning alerts on your phone when lightning is occurring.
The key to remaining safe from a lightning strike is to keep an eye
to the sky and watch for darkening skies on the horizon along with
distant rumbles of thunder. The main tip to remember regarding
lightning safety is: being outside is never safe during a
thunderstorm!
NOAA Video: Lightning: The Impacts on People
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hl2h1Ubh-g8