With rainy season upon Southwest Florida, often accompanying the usual afternoon and evening precipitation are strikes of lightning. 

June 22 to the 28 is National Lighting Safety Awareness Week, started in 2001 to call attention to lighting being an underrated killer.

According to an AccuWeather release issued Wednesday, more than 30 individuals have been injured by lighting strikes over the past two weeks across the country, including 20 people who were hit by a single bolt of lightning at a lake in South Carolina.

Officials said lighting incidents, including fatal ones, involved people swimming, golfing, and taking shelter in unsafe areas. 

“Lightning is a serious summertime safety risk that can injure or tragically kill people who are outdoors,” stated AccuWeather Chief Meteorologist Jonathan Porter in the release. “Be aware of your surroundings and have a plan to get to a safe shelter if you hear thunder rumble in the distance. Don’t wait for the storm to approach or to hear more thunder, the first rumble is the time to get indoors, or to a vehicle if a building is not nearby.” 

AccuWeather expert meteorologists are encouraging people to learn how to recognize the signs of developing thunderstorms and to download the free AccuWeather app to receive AccuWeather Lightning Alerts.

“https://www.accuweather.com/en/us/cape-coral/33904/weather-forecast/332355″ rel=”noopener” target=”_blank”>AccuWeather experts state swimming and other beach activities are some of the “deadly dozen” activities for lightning-related deaths, ranking as the second-deadliest, only after fishing. Lightning has killed 32 people at beaches across the country since 2006.  

According to the National Lighting Safety Council, since the inception of the initiative began, U.S. lightning fatalities has dropped from about 55 per year to fewer than 30. 

“This reduction is lightning fatalities is largely due to the greater awareness of lightning danger and people seeking safety when thunderstorms threaten,” National Lighting Safety Council officials stated. “During Lightning Safety Awareness Week, we encourage you to learn more about lightning and lightning safety.”

NWS officials say the best way to protect one’s self from lightning is to avoid the threat. 

“You simply don’t want to be caught outside in a storm,” officials state. “Have a lightning safety plan, and cancel or postpone activities early if thunderstorms are expected. Monitor weather conditions and get to a safe place before the weather becomes threatening. Substantial buildings and hard-topped vehicles are safe options. Rain shelters, small sheds, and open vehicles are not safe.”

If lightning is occurring but you’re inside, do not touch anything that is plugged into an electrical outlet, plumbing, and corded phones. Cell phones and cordless phones are safe. Officials also recommend staying away from outside doors and windows and do not lie on a garage floor.

“Although most people get inside, some put themselves at risk by touching items that could become electrified by a nearby lightning strike,” officials state. “Finally, many people go outside too soon after the storm has seemingly passed, often only waiting for the rain to become lighter or end. It is all of these unsafe behaviors that put people at risk when thunderstorm are in the area.”

NLSC officials state that if someone is struck by lightning, they may need immediate medical attention. Lightning victims do not carry an electrical charge and are safe to touch. Call 9-1-1 and monitor the victim. Start CPR or use an Automated External Defibrillator if needed.

For more information on lighting safety, visit www.lightningsafetycouncil.org.

How lighting is used to study 

At Lee County Electric Cooperative, lighting is tracked through a third-party service for analysis. 

“We run analysis on how lightning impacts power delivery, either by causing brief momentary outages, or longer outages,” said LCEC spokesperson, Karen Ryan. “LCEC also uses the service to monitor the weather, including lightning, allowing us to make adjustments through the use of smart technology like protective devices to be more responsive to strikes. LCEC is also able to schedule crews on standby to respond if outages occur.”

“https://www.fpl.com/” rel=”noopener” target=”_blank”>Florida Power and Light has developed what it calls a “Lightning Lab“, which uses high voltage to simulate lightning strikes, and these “strikes” help the company see if its utility grid and equipment can withstand the next bolt from the sky.

“Finding even the smallest issues here in the Lightning Lab make a big difference toward the reliability of our electric grid,” stated FPL spokesperson Jack Eble. “This testing helps ensure that we’re investing in high-quality products that can hold up in Florida’s unique environment.”