PERSONAL SAFETY

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LIGHTNING STRIKES And Your
Safety
Presentation designed by 2nd Lt Wayne Buchanan,
CAP Rampello Downtown School Cadet
Squadron SER-FL-818
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• As a Civil Air Patrol Member I pledge to
  promote an uncompromising safety environment for
  myself and others, and to prevent the loss of, or
  damage to Civil Air Patrol assets entrusted to
  me. I will perform all my activities in a
  professional and safe manner, and will hold
  myself accountable for my actions in all of our
  Missions for America.

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Lightning in Florida

• Florida is the Lightning Capital of the U.S. and
  leads the U.S. in lightning deaths, injuries, and
  casualties.
• Lightning is the 1 weather killer in Florida -
  more than all other weather deaths combined!
• Central Florida, from Tampa to Titusville is
  "Lightning Alley" in the U.S.!

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Lightning - Facts

• Virtually anything can get struck by lightning!
• Trees / Animals / Humans / Buildings / Aircraft /
  Ships / Bushes / Light poles / Vehicles
• Lightning strikes are absolutely
• UNPREDICTABLE!!!!
• Place of strike / Intensity / Destruction
  potential cannot be determined

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Lightning - Facts

• Lightning strikes the Earth 1,800 times at any
  moment.
• The Earth has 100 lightning strikes per second -
  3.6 trillion per year.
• Injures many more than it kills.
• Often causes life-long severe debilitating
  injuries.
• Kills about 100 people in the U.S. each year.
• Injures about 1000 people in the U.S. each year.
• In the U.S., lightning kills more than Hurricanes
  and Tornadoes, combined. Only floods kill more!

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• The Odds Of An Individual Being Struck By
  Lightning In A Year In The U.S. Is About
  300,000-To-OneIf Youre An Average Person, In An
  Average Location, With Average Outside
  Activities, And Average Lightning Safety
  Behavior. In Florida, Its Closer To
  100,000-To-One Per Year.
• The Odds Of An Individual Being Killed By
  Lightning Each Year In The U.S. Is About 3
  Million-To-OneIf Youre An Average Person, In An
  Average Location, With Average Outside
  Activities, And Average Lightning Safety
  Behavior. In Florida, Its Closer To 1
  Million-To-One Per Year.

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Lightning - Facts

• 25 of Lightning victims die!
• Lightning damage probability is more in summer.
• 85 of the lightning strike victims are children
  and young men (10 to 35 years old) engaged in
  work recreation .
• Most lightning strikes occur between 2 pm to 6
  pm.
• 70 of strikes happen between June August.

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On average lightning probably strikes each
airplane in the U.S. more than once each year.

• May 9, 2001 HONG KONG According to media
  reports a Cathay Pacific Boeing 747-400 was
  struck three times by lightning close to Chek Lap
  Kok airport today. The airline confirmed the
  event and said a cockpit window was damaged.
  Nobody was hurt in this incident. Cathay Pacific
  Flight 250 from London Heathrow with 245
  passengers on board was still approaching the
  Hong Kong airport when suddenly the series of
  lightning strikes hit the Jumbo Jet. One of the
  lightning strikes cracked the right side cockpit
  window, said the airline. The crew informed the
  control tower at Chek Lap Kok.

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Lightning Myth - 1

• Lightning strikes only on tall objects!

The probability of a tall object getting struck
is more! In African animal parks, Giraffes die
from lightning strikes more than any other animal!
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Lightning Myth - 2

• Lightning never strikes the same place twice!
• THE EMPIRE STATE BUILDING IS STRUCK BY LIGHTNING
  ABOUT 100 TIMES EACH YEAR!

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Lightning Myth - 3

• Standing under a tree during lightning is safe!
• 14 of lightning deaths occur to people standing
  under trees.

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Lightning Myth - 4

• You are completely safe inside a metal bodied
  car!
• Not completely true! So long as you jump out or
  stay inside, you are safe. DONOT STEP OUT! Safest
  thing to do is not to get into any vehicle.

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• Jul 10, 1926 Lightning Exploded A Navy
  Ammunition Depot, Mount Hope NJ. 19 People Died,
  38 Wounded. Cost to Rebuild was 81 Million.
• May 6, 1937 Hindenberg Airship Destroyed By An
  Electrostatic Discharge 36 People Died.
• Dec. 8, 1963 A Pan Am 707 crashed in flames in a
  Maryland field in 1963 after lightning hit the
  Boeing jet and ignited a wing fuel tank. All 81
  people aboard were killed.
• The NTSB believes lightning caused the in-flight
  explosion of an Iranian Air Force 747 in May 1976
  near Madrid, Spain.
• June 1998 Lightning Struck An Outdoor Rock
  Concert With 35,000 People In Baltimore, MD. 13
  People Were Injured, Despite The Installed
  Lightning Rods.
• July 1998 5 Firefighters Were Injured When
  Lightning Struck Their Firetruck In Las Vegas,
  NV.
• October 1998 Lightning Killed 11 Soccer Players
  In Congo, Africa (All On The Same Team)

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Places to avoid during lightning

• Small structures including huts rain shelters.
• Nearby metallic objects like fences, gates,
• instrumentation and electrical equipment,
  wires, and power poles.
• Under trees - not golf (14 of deaths)
• Golf/golf under trees (5 of deaths)
• Water related boating, fishing, swimming
• (8 of deaths)
• Open fields recreation areas (not golf) (27 of
  deaths)
• Using the (hard wired) telephone and headsets
  (2.4 of deaths).
• 40 Unreported.
• 3 Heavy equipment and machinery-related.
• 0.7 Radio, transmitter antenna-related

• Percentages taken from National Oceanic and
  Atmospheric Administration survey compiled in
  October 1997.

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UNSAFE AREAS

• When inside a building, avoid use of the
  telephone, taking a shower, washing your hands,
  electrical wiring, cable TV wiring, plumbing,
  being near windows balconies
• Parking lots / Tennis Courts / Golf Courses /
  athletic fields / tents temporary structures
• Near clotheslines, wire fences, overhead wires
  and rail-road tracks

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SAFE AREAS

• Large metal-framed enclosed structures
• Lightning protected buildings
• Fully enclosed metal vehicles, with rolled-up
  windows (avoid contact with metal surfaces
  outside or inside the vehicle)
• City Streets shielded by nearby buildings
• Underground shelters such as tunnels, caves
• Seek low lying areas / dense woods

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LIGHTNING SAFETY CROUCH

• If you feel your skin tingle or your hair stand
  on end, squat low to the ground on the balls of
  your feet.
• Place your hands on your knees with your head
  between them. Make yourself the smallest target
  possible and minimize your contact with the
  ground.

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Lightning Safety Rating

• In order of descending safety where 10 is the
  best
• Lightning Certified Safe Shelter, Rating (10)
• Lightning Protected Building, Rating (9)
• Large enclosed substantially constructed building
  (the center of a low level interior room is
  better). Rating (7)
• An enclosed metal car, bus, airplane, train or
  tractor, Rating (3)
• The safety crouch position rating (1/2)
• Outdoors, Rating (0)

Ratings are from the USAF 45th weather
squadron William P. Roeder, Chief Staff
Meteorologist
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Outdoor Lightning Safety Tips

• If you hear thunder, suspend all outdoor
  activities!
• If you see Lightning, seek a shelter immediately!
• Those people who are working at heights - climb
  down and take shelter in a protected building /
  room or in the safe areas mentioned
• Avoid unnecessary exposure to lightning (go out
  only if absolutely essential!!!)
• Depend on the radio to keep updated of weather
  conditions.

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Lightning First-Aid

• All lightning deaths are from stopped heart /
  breathing. CPR is the recommended first aid.
• Even if a lightning survivor seems okay after the
  strike, they should still go to the hospital to
  check for heart / lung problems which could cause
  death hours later
• It is perfectly safe to touch a lightning victim
  to give them first aid.
• Call 911

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• The Best Thing You Can Do To Avoid Lightning
  Danger Is Learn And Practice Good Lightning
  Safety!
•  No Place Outside Is Safe Near A Thunderstorm!
• The 30-30 Rule Offers The Best Lightning Safety
  Guidance For The General Public. 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 cant see the lightning, just hearing the
  lightning is a good back-up rule). Wait 30
  Minutes Or More After The Lightning Flash Before
  Leaving Shelter.
• A House, Or Other Fully Enclosed Substantially
  Constructed Building, Offers Your Best Protection
  Against Lightning. But Stay Away From
  Telephones, Plumbing, TVs, Radios, Other Wires,
  Or Any Other Conducting Path Leading Outside.
  (substantially constructed means it has wiring
  and plumbing)
• A Car With A Metal Roof And Sides Is Your Second
  Best Protection Against Lightning. As In A
  House, Dont Touch Any Conducting Paths Leading
  Outside. It Is The Metal Shell That Protects
  You, Not The Rubber Tires.

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Being aware of lightning hazards itself is a big
step towards lightning safety!!!!