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| Sun, 08/05/2012 05:01 PM Injured | 9 of 10 | 0.0 | U | Long Pond PA USA | at Pocono race track | N/A | Ground Strike,Indirect,Outside,RaceTrack/Speedway | |
| RELATED Lightning strike kills 1, injures 9 after NASCAR race at Pocono Raceway TOPICS Weather Warnings Hospitals and Clinics Scranton See more topics » MAPS Long Pond, PA, USA Moosic, PA, USA By Tracy Jordan and Daniel Patrick Sheehan, Of The Morning Call 4:41 p.m. EDT, August 6, 2012 The man killed by lightning Sunday during the Pocono 400 was a 41-year-old husband and father of three who was helping to pack items into a minivan when the bolt struck during a heavy thunderstorm. Brian Zimmerman of Moosic, near Scranton, collapsed and could not be revived despite the efforts of an off-duty paramedic and raceway firefighters who were nearby and witnessed the strike, according to the Monroe County coroner and raceway officials. Zimmerman and two of his friends were among 10 people struck in the 5 p.m. incident. Except for one of Zimmerman's friends who has been upgraded from critical to stable condition at Lehigh Valley Hospital-Cedar Crest all have been released from area hospitals. Coroner Robert Allen said the cause and manner of Zimmerman's death will have to be confirmed by autopsy but will likely be ruled an accident due to lightning. » The latest on traffic, delays and road construction delivered to your mobile phone. Text TRAFFIC to 52270! Message and data rates apply. Text STOP TRAFFIC to cancel, text HELP for help. Click for terms and conditions. Witnesses reported that Zimmerman and his two friends were standing at the rear of the Dodge Caravan they drove to the race and were packing items into the hatchback when lightning the vehicle, Allen said. According to Allen, an off-duty paramedic walking to his car initiated cardiopulmonary rescusitation. Three minutes later, the track's emergency medical services unit arrived and initiated advanced cardiac life support. Zimmerman was transported to the race track's infield hospital, where a doctor and nurse continued advance cardiac life support without success. He was then transported to Pocono Medical Center in East Stroudsburg, where he was pronounced dead at 6:11 p.m. by an emergency room doctor. Zimmerman is survived by a wife and three children under the age of 5, Allen said. A severe thunderstorm warning had been issued by the National Weather Service at 4:12 p.m. but cars were still on the track 30 minutes later and the race didn't end until 4:50 p.m. The lightning strike that killed Zimmerman happened 11 minutes later. A second lightning strike at 6:35 p.m. injured another spectator, who was treated for minor injuries at the track and taken to Pocono Medical Center for evaluation. The track had posted warnings on its Facebook page and Twitter account, advising spectators to seek shelter, and made the same announcement over the public address system. On Monday, the raceway released a statement of sympathy for Zimmerman's family and defended its response to the storm, saying it is committed to fan safety. "We work in conjunction with NASCAR regarding safety of fans, teams and other attendees throughout the course of our race weekends," the statement said. "Additionally, we are in constant communication with local and national agencies regarding weather conditions and emergency services.&We will learn from the incident and continue to implement strategies to help ensure the safety of fans and all attendees at future events at Pocono Raceway." Zimmerman's death was the second lightning fatality in Pennsylvania this year. On July 24, a pregnant Amish woman, Mary Yoder, was struck while picking berries in Garret, Somerset County. Yoder and her unborn child died. Dozens of Americans die every year in lightning strikes, though the tolls vary widely. Last year, there were 26 fatalities in 18 states. In 2006, there were 48 deaths in 24 states. So far this year, there have been 19 deaths in 14 states this year. Texas has the most, with three, followed by Pennsylvania, Alabama and Mississippi with two each. Tracy Jordan and Daniel Patrick Sheehan | ||||||||
| Sun, 08/05/2012 05:01 PM Injured | 8 of 10 | 0.0 | U | Long Pond PA USA | at Pocono race track | Indirect,Outside,RaceTrack/Speedway | ||
| Sun, 08/05/2012 04:45 PM Injured | 3 of 10 @ Pocono Racetrack | 0.0 | U | Long Pond PA USA | at Pocono race track | Ground Strike,Indirect,Outside,RaceTrack/Speedway | ||
| NASCAR: Debate over weather warnings at Pocono DAN GELSTON | August 6, 2012 06:30 PM EST | Compare other versions » LONG POND, Pa. Brian Mattson and Tom Deacher climbed into their truck and got set to leave saturated Pocono Raceway. That's when the lightning bolt slammed into a tent canopy just a couple of rows away from where they parked, shooting off sparks like a Roman candle. The NASCAR fans jumped out and found two men on the ground. Deacher and others tried to administer CPR until paramedics arrived. "When the tent collapsed, I knew it wasn't right," Deacher said. The lightning strike was one of two that hit the just outside the track Sunday during a confusing and tragic end to a shortened day of racing. One of the bolts killed 41-year-old Brian Zimmerman, and a total of nine others were injured. A day later, Pocono officials said they warned fans to take cover when the weather turned nasty even as stock cars continued to race around the track while some fans insisted there was no warning. Others took to Twitter and Facebook to say the announcements in the grandstands and camping areas to seek refuge in their cars came too late, after the worst of rain hit the track. "Mother Nature's sneaky," track president Brandon Igdalsky said. "You don't know what she's going to do." Zimmerman, of nearby Moosic, died as he stood near his car with the back hatch open in the raceway parking, according to the Monroe County coroner. A woman who answered the phone at Zimmerman's home declined comment. Deacher couldn't be sure if Zimmerman was the man he had tried to help. One of the other injured fans had been listed Sunday night in critical condition but was upgraded to stable, Igdalsky said. The remaining eight people had been treated and released from the hospital. "The individuals that were affected have spoken to the hospital folks, and they're in good spirits," Igdalsky said. "It's just a freak incident. They said they had a great day and, boom, this happened to us." Track officials said the crowd of 85,000 was advised several times to take cover Sunday afternoon over public address systems and social media when storms threatened the area near the end of the race. They were checking their logs for details of those announcements. But some posted on the raceway's Facebook page that they never heard the weather warnings. One fan noted in a Twitter message to The Associated Press that the races are so loud you can't hear people near you, let alone the public address system. NASCAR spokesman Dave Higdon said Monday that officials are reviewing how the track carried out its emergency procedures. He cautioned against rushing to judgment. "Anytime something like this happens, we make sure we look at it again and see if there's anything we should have done different," Higdon said. "It's never a good day for us when someone passes and people are hurt." A severe storm warning was issued for the area at 4:12 p.m. and NASCAR called the race at 4:54 p.m. Igdalsky will review how many warnings the track issued to fans over that time. "We're trying to figure out exactly when those (warnings) happened," he said. "Some fans are saying they heard it early. Some are saying they didn't hear it early. So we're going through all our logs and records to see when that went through." But some wonder if NASCAR should have halted the race if it knew lightning and thunderstorms were approaching, even if the track was still dry. That responsibility ultimately rests with the tracks, Higdon said. "They need to ensure the safety of the fans up to our expectations for them," he said. "We need to ensure the safety of the competitors and those who are part of the traveling team that goes to each track." Higdon said he was confident Pocono officials had taken the appropriate steps. Chad Philistine, of Reading, who took his mother to the race, said that when the start was delayed because of an earlier storm, they heard an announcement advising fans to take refuge in their cars. "But the red flag (that stopped the race), I personally didn't hear anything," he said. "I'm pretty sure my mom didn't hear anything." One bolt hit the grandstand parking area around 5 p.m. Sunday, killing Zimmerman and injuring eight others, Igdalsky said. A second possible strike came around 6:35 p.m., sending a ninth person to the hospital with minor injuries, he said. Igdalsky expressed sorrow at a news conference Monday afternoon at the track, where a large U.S. flag flew at half-staff. "Fans are like family to us," Igdalsky said, noting that Zimmerman had been coming to races for several years with his friends. He added that he planned to contact Zimmerman's family and visit other victims. Communicating incoming weather is often a challenge for officials at tracks throughout the country. Most such facilities especially the 2.5-mile Pocono Raceway are massive, with fans spread among grandstand seating and a spacious infield where fans camp and tailgate. Decisions about proceeding with a race are typically made minute-by-minute, although there have been instances the last several years when NASCAR worked with track officials in advance of incoming bad weather. The decision to postpone a 2008 race at Richmond was made a day before the scheduled start because Tropical Storm Hanna was moving toward Virginia. In 2010, all track activity at Talladega Superspeedway was canceled because of extended periods of severe weather. Track officials made the decision based on advice from the Talladega County Emergency Management Agency and the National Weather Service, which warned of potential tornadoes. And this season, the Daytona 500 was postponed for the first time in its 54-year history. Such moves create another problem for NASCAR: Fans feel cheated if they don't see a full race, and NASCAR's first priority is usually to try to wait out a storm in order to complete all the scheduled laps. Ed Klima, director of emergency services at Dover International Speedway in Delaware, said that while "the facility is ultimately responsible for the fans' safety ... it's obviously very difficult to get people to leave if there's still cars going around the racetrack." He also noted that racetracks are not built like NFL stadiums, which have concourses where fans can gather during inclement weather. So why not stop the race before a storm hits? "It's somewhat difficult to pull that trigger 30, 40 minutes out when the weather, in our case a lot of times, breaks up, changes directions, what have you," Klima said. There have been 20 lightning fatalities nationally so far this year. The deaths have occurred while people were playing soccer, fishing, doing yard work, picking squash or berries, and simply at outdoor gatherings. "There is simply no safe place outside" when a storm hits, said John Jensenius, a lightning safety specialist with the National Weather Service. Klima said individual responsibility comes into play. "People still have to take ownership of their actions," Klima said. "We can clear the grandstands, we can institute our severe weather plan, and then people can still choose not to follow it." ___ Associated Press writers Jenna Fryer in London, Kevin Begos in Pittsburgh and Kathy Matheson in Philadelphia contributed to this report. | ||||||||
| Sun, 08/05/2012 05:01 PM Injured | Travis Rauch, 7 of 10 | 0.0 | M | Long Pond PA USA | at Pocono race track | N/A | Indirect,Outside,RaceTrack/Speedway | |
| TUNKHANNOCK TOWNSHIP It s just one of those things you think is never gonna happen. Travis Rauch of Salem Township is out of the hospital, but still in disbelief. He was one of 10 people hit by lightning at Pocono Raceway over the weekend. One man was killed. The entrance was right here, came all the way across to my pinky finger here and a little spot on my thumb from where I was holding onto the canopy, said Rauch, showing burn marks on his right hand from where doctors said the lightning entered his body. Rauch was holding a canopy that started blowing over in the parking lot near where Rauch and his friend had parked when the bolt struck late Sunday afternoon. Rauch said heard a loud bang and saw a pure white flash. When I was holding it, it felt like someone took a sledgehammer with electricity, like a 220 line and just smashed my hand, said Rauch. Rauch is a volunteer firefighter with emergency medical training and was at the track with a friend, another volunteer firefighter with the same training. That friend quickly gave Rauch two sternum rubs before he was taken to the track trauma center and then to Geisinger Wyoming Valley, where he met his family. I cried I saw my son for the first time, I cried, just to see them, more or less so they knew I was alive and I was ok. Rauch was wearing sneakers when he was struck. Doctors told him those sneakers probably saved his life by insulating him and stopping the electricity. Rauch said he knows just how lucky he was. I never believed it until that moment, when they say your life flashes before your eyes, it really does. When I was on the ground, all I remember is I saw everything bad and good I ever did in my entire life. I mean, it was probably the most emotional moment I ever had when I got to see my wife and my kids, you know? It s a life changer, it makes you look at you an go at any moment, you never know when you re going to go or your ticket is going to be pulled. | ||||||||
| Sun, 08/05/2012 05:01 PM Injured | 4 of 10 @ Pocono Racetrack | 0.0 | U | Long Pond PA USA | at Pocono race track | Indirect,Outside,RaceTrack/Speedway | ||
| Pocono reveals more details in lightning strike tragedy By Sports Network The Sports Network E-Mail Print reprint or license 0 comments Text Size: Officials from Pocono Raceway have provided more information regarding Sunday's lightning strikes that killed one race fan and injured several others following the conclusion of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series event. On Monday, Monroe County Coroner Bob Allen identified the deceased as Brian Zimmerman, a 41-year-old resident of Moosic, Pa. Zimmerman was pronounced dead at roughly 7 p.m. (ET) when he arrived at the Pocono Medical Center in nearby East Stroudsburg. Officials said the nine other individuals injured as a result of two separate lightning strikes were transferred to local hospitals. One fan was transported to Lehigh Hospital in Allentown and listed in critical condition. However, that person's condition was upgraded to stable on Monday. The identities of the nine injured victims have yet to be released. Some of them were treated at the racetrack's infield medical care center, while others were transported to the hospital, where they remained overnight for treatment and observation. "On behalf of the entire staff here at Pocono Raceway, we are deeply saddened by yesterday's tragic events," track president and chief executive officer Brandon Igdalsky said in a statement. "As mentioned, our fans are like family to us, and we express our deepest condolences to the individuals and families involved, especially Mr. Zimmerman's. "We work in conjunction with NASCAR regarding safety of fans, teams and other attendees throughout the course of our race weekends. Additionally, we are in constant communication with local and national agencies regarding weather conditions and emergency services." According to officials, the first lightning strike occurred at approximately 5:01 p.m. local time in the track's grandstand parking area, located near Gate 5A. A Pocono Raceway grandstand fire unit was stationed in the vicinity and witnessed the actual strike. Medical personnel and additional emergency services arrived on the scene within a matter of three minutes and took control of treatment to the individuals. CPR had already begun on Zimmerman by a friend on the scene. EMT responders were approached by those who reported symptoms related to the lightning strike. The track's race control tower was notified of a second possible lightning strike in the vicinity near Gate 3 at approximately 6:35 p.m. Igdalsky also said in his statement, "The safety of all guests to Pocono Raceway is of the utmost importance to our entire staff. This tragic event is at the forefront of all of our thoughts and prayers. We will learn from the incident and continue to implement strategies to help ensure the safety of fans and all attendees at future events at Pocono Raceway. We are in the process up establishing a Memorial Fund is for victims of this incident. More information will be released a soon as possible." The track was under a severe thunderstorm watch for most of Sunday before a warning was issued for the area shortly after 4 p.m. NASCAR officials stopped the race and called it after 98 of the scheduled 160 laps were completed. Jeff Gordon was leading when the event was halted and therefore awarded his first win of the 2012 season. Read more here: http://www.struckbylightning.org/news/sbl20120608085514_pocono-reveals-more-details-in.html#storylink=cpy | ||||||||
| Sun, 08/05/2012 05:01 PM Injured | 5 of 10 @ Pocono Racetrack | 0.0 | U | Long Pond PA USA | at Pocono race track | N/A | Indirect,Outside,RaceTrack/Speedway | |
| UPDATED: Moosic man was lightning victim Brian Zimmerman, 41, dies after storm at raceway. Andrew M. Seder - aseder@timesleader.com - 570-829-7269 - Twitter: @TLAndrewSeder Aug 7 Article appeared on page 1A of the Times Leader More Story Tools Print | EMail | Save | Hear Font size: Locator Map Map Data - Terms of Use Report a map error Map Satellite 500 Long Pond Rd Longpond, PA 18334 UPDATED at 3:36 p.m.: Lehigh Valley Health System spokesman Brian Downs says a second lightning strike victim has been discharged from Lehigh Valley-Cedar Crest. He said another would be discharged later today. "Another remains in stable condition and is likely to be discharged tomorrow," Downs said. Other hospitals where victims of Sunday's deadly lightning strikeat Pocono Raceway were transported to would not disclose patient conditions, including Geisinger Wyoming Valley in Plains Township and Pocono Medical Center in East Stroudsburg. ORIGINAL STORY: Authorities on Monday identified Brian Zimmerman, 41, of Moosic, as the fan killed by an apparent lightning strike at Pocono Raceway Sunday evening. Nine others were injured just after a heavy thunderstorm system caused officials to call the Pennsylvania 400 early. Authorities are not disclosing their identities. Monroe County Coroner Robert M. Allen said an autopsy is scheduled for the married father of three today at Lehigh Valley Medical Center in Allentown. Allen said it appeared, based on witness accounts, that the death was caused by the lightning strike. A cause of death will be listed after the autopsy. Crews worked on resuscitating Zimmerman en route from the raceway in Long Pond to Pocono Medical Center in East Stroudsburg, but Allen said he arrived at the emergency room dead on arrival. The victim was near his car in a parking lot after the race had ended when lightning struck the car, Allen said. Bystanders performed CPR on Zimmerman, who had gone into cardiac arrest, until paramedics arrived, Allen said. They took him to the track s medical facility, where efforts to revive him failed. The strike occurred at about 5:01 p.m., the track confirmed. Nine others hurt The nine others were injured by lightning strikes that occurred in the track s parking lot behind the grandstands and near Gate No. 3, near Long Pond Road, according to track spokesman Bob Pleban. The strike at Gate No. 3 occurred at 6:35 p.m., track officials said. Pleban said four of those injured were transported to Pocono Medical Center. Two had minor injuries, one had moderate injuries and the fourth, Zimmerman, had critical injuries and eventually died. An emotional track President Brandon Igdalsky, who also expressed his condolences for the victims, made the announcement of the fatality at about 7:45 p.m. Sunday Unfortunately, a member of our raceway family here, a fan, has passed away, he said. On Monday, Igdalsky issued a statement that noted: The safety of all guests to Pocono Raceway is of the utmost importance to our entire staff. This tragic event is at the forefront of all of our thoughts and prayers. We will learn from the incident and continue to implement strategies to help ensure the safety of fans and all attendees at future events at Pocono Raceway. In addition, he said the track is in the process of establishing a memorial fund for victims of this incident. Two injured race attendees were taken to Geisinger Wyoming Valley Medical Center in Plains Township, one with moderate injuries and the other with minor injuries. Four more were taken to Lehigh Valley Hospital Center-Cedar Crest in Salisbury Township, near Allentown, including one in critical condition. On Monday, Brian Downs, a Lehigh Valley Hospital spokesman, said the critical patient was upgraded to stable condition; two others also are in stable condition and one has been discharged. He could not provide names, ages, sex or hometown of the patients. Without having the names of the other victims, attempts to get updates on conditions on Monday from other hospitals were unsuccessful. It is our hospital policy to not issue any potential patient-related information, said Geoffrey Roche, a Pocono Medical Center spokesman. Matt Van Stone, spokesman for Geisinger Wyoming Valley, said without a name, he cannot comment. Track officials say that between social media messages and an announcement on the public address system, fans were urged to leave the metal grandstands and seek shelter. At 4:21 p.m. Sunday, about 30 minutes before the race was officially called, Pocono Raceway issued the following warning on its Twitter and Facebook accounts: ATTENTION FANS: Severe thunderstorms are in the area which will produce high winds and lightning. Should arrive in 10-15 mins. The race was stopped by NASCAR officials at about 4:50 p.m. when rain began falling. At 4:59 p.m. Sunday, the following message was posted on the track s Twitter and Facebook pages: ATTENTION FANS: Be advised, seek shelter as severe lightning and heavy winds are in our area. A story in USA Today quoted Sheena Baker of Somerset, who said as she was leaving the track at 4:30 p.m. and heard a severe weather announcement on the track s PA system. But Baker said it was hard to hear over the sound of jet dryers and cars on the track. Baker said she and her friends left the track after checking the weather radar on their smartphones. If people in the grandstands can watch the radar, they had to know this was coming, Baker said. They should have done a better job of notifying the people in the grandstands. Review under way NASCAR spokesman Dave Higdon told The Associated Press that officials are reviewing how the track carried out its emergency procedures. He cautioned against rushing to judgment until all the facts are known. Anytime something like this happens, we make sure we look at it again and see if there s anything we should have done different, Higdon said. It s never a good day for us when someone passes and people are hurt. Track officials are going through log books to establish a timeline for the storm, weather warnings and final laps of the shortened race, Igdalsky said. 19 DEATHS so far this year According to the National Weather Service, an average of 54 people are reported killed each year by lightning in the United States. The death at Pocono Raceway Sunday night was the 19th reported lightning strike death this year nationally and the second one in Pennsylvania following the death of 36-year-old Mary Yoder who was struck while picking blueberries in Garrett, Somerset County on July 24. The National Lightning Safety Institute said 136 people have been injured in lightning strikes this year nationally. The odds of being struck by lightning in the U.S. is 1 in 280,000, that organization said. To see more about 2012 lightning-related casualties, go to: http://www.lightningsafety.noaa.gov/fatalities.htm Read More http://www.timesleader.com/stories/Moosic-man-lightning-victim,187532#ixzz239BkqB3B | ||||||||
| Sun, 08/05/2012 04:45 PM Injured | 2 o 10 @ Pocono Racetrack | 0.0 | U | Long Pond PA USA | near car after race cancelled due to weather | Indirect,Outside,RaceTrack/Speedway | ||
| LONG POND What was a happy day for winning NASCAR driver Jeff Gordon and his fans turned into a nightmare at Pocono Raceway after one person was killed and nine others injured by lightning strikes Sunday afternoon just after the Pennsylvania 400 was called early because of storms. As race cars were being covered and fans were trying to get away from the torrential downpours, multiple lightning bolts struck, two of them injuring 10 fans. One was later pronounced dead on arrival at Pocono Medical Center in East Stroudsburg. One of the injury-inducing strikes occurred in the parking lot behind the grandstands and the other was near gate No. 3, track spokesman Bob Pleban said. Pleban said four of those injured were transported to Pocono Medical Center. Two had minor injuries, one had moderate injuries, and the fourth had critical injuries and eventually died. An emotional track President Brandon Igdalsky, who also expressed his condolences for the victims, made the announcement of the fatality at about 7:45 p.m. Unfortunately, a member of our raceway family here, a fan, has passed away, he said. Two other race attendees were taken to Geisinger Wyoming Valley Medical Center in Plains Township, one with moderate injuries and the other with minor injuries. Three more were taken to Lehigh Valley Hospital Center-Cedar Crest in Salisbury Township, near Allentown. A tenth person was taken to Lehigh Valley Hospital in Allentown and was in critical condition, Pleban said. The storm, which anyone who had access to any weather website knew was on its way for at least 30 minutes, arrived at about 4:40 p.m., causing NASCAR officials to throw a yellow caution flag and eventually call the race on lap 98, 62 laps shy of the advertised total of 160. Heavy rains and winds pounded the track as darkness closed in.. Lightning strikes were plentiful and thunder rolled over the Pocono Mountains as the storm moved from west to east. The track public address announcer asked fans to exit the metal grandstands because of the lightning but only after the race ended. As driver Kasey Kahne spoke to media in a post-race press conference, word began to spread among journalists that a lightning strike at the track had caused injuries. Shortly after Kahne left the center, Pleban confirmed that two people were struck by lightning and were taken to a local hospital. Later he said a third fan was also struck but was treated and evaluated by on-site emergency personnel and released. An hour later the number of those injured grew to 10. Despite the congested traffic leaving the venue, continued heavy rain and lightning prevented the use of a helicopter to transport the victims. At 4:21 p.m., about 30 minutes before the race was officially called, Pocono Raceway issued the following warning on its Twitter and Facebook accounts: ATTENTION FANS: Severe thunderstorms are in the area which will produce high winds and lightning. Should arrive in 10-15 mins. At 4:59 p.m., the following message was posted on the track s Twitter and Facebook pages: ATTENTION FANS: Be advised, seek shelter as severe lightning and heavy winds are in our area. At 5:50 p.m., Igdalsky tweeted: Hoping for the safety of all the fans that are leaving in this crazy storm. Please seek shelter as there is a lot of cloud 2 ground lightning. Race winner Gordon said he felt for the injured fans and said he believed he knew exactly which bolts caused the damage. There was a huge, huge crack of lightning; you could tell it was very close, he said after he won his first race of the season and record sixth all time at Pocono. The fans here are so loyal and so avid, they stick around, he said. It s so unfortunate. You hate to hear something like that. Pleban, calling the incident a very fluid situation, said he could not release information on the victims because family members have not been sufficiently contacted as of Sunday night. He said more information might be available today, and the track would release whatever it learns. A supervisor at Pocono Medical Center said she could not comment Sunday night. Sporting News motor sports reporter Bob Pockrass reported that Kyle Manger, a fan from New Jersey, said he saw people hit by the lightning near the Turn 3 grandstands. Me and my friend just ran into our truck during all the nasty weather, Manger told the publication. The visibility was very poor and all of a sudden (I) saw a bolt of lightning right in front of our windshield. When it became a little more visible, we saw two bodies next to a destroyed tent with people scrambling. Manger said the lightning strike occurred about five to 10 minutes after the race was called. Multiple NASCAR drivers, fans and U.S. Sen. Pat Toomey all issued statements or tweets expressing condolences for the victims throughout Sunday night. Read More http://www.timesleader.com/stories/Lightning-kills-1-hurts-9-at-race,187033#ixzz22m6i562X | ||||||||
| Sat, 08/04/2012 04:00 PM Injured | 2 of 4 family members | 28.0 | F | Princes Corner PA USA | under umbrella under tree | Indirect,Outside,Picnic,Yard | ||
| Sat, 08/04/2012 12:00 PM Injured | 2 of 2 on roof | 0.0 | M | Dayton OH USA | working on roof | Indirect,On a Roof,Outside,Work | ||
| Sat, 08/04/2012 10:00 AM Injured | Gunnar Starks | 11.0 | M | Riceville IA USA | http://postbulletin.com/news/stories/display.php?i | fishing at Lake Hendricks | N/A | Coma,Critical,fishing,Outside |
| Byron boy in critical condition after possible lightning strike Share Posted: Aug 06, 2012, 9:07 am By Christina Killion Valdez The Post-Bulletin, Rochester MN An 11-year-old boy from Byron remains in critical condition after being injured by a possible lightning strike Saturday morning at a campground in Iowa. Gunnar Starks was fishing at Lake Hendricks in Riceville, Iowa, when the accident occurred. He is being treated at Saint Marys Hospital. A CaringBridge website has been set up in his name. RICEVILLE, IA - A Minnesota boy is in a medically-induced coma after being struck by lightning. Riceville police received a 911 call around 10:15 Saturday morning of an emergency at Lake Hendricks Park. According to the police report, an 11-year-old boy was taken to Mitchell County Regional Health Center, and later transported to Mayo in Rochester. Family members say Gunnar Starks, of Byron, is in critical condition Sunday evening, and is in a medically-induced coma | ||||||||
| Sat, 08/04/2012 04:00 PM Injured | 4 of 4 family members | 1.0 | M | Princes Corner PA USA | under umbrella under tree | Indirect,Outside,Picnic,Yard | ||
| Sat, 08/04/2012 04:00 PM Injured | 3 of 4 family members | 7.0 | M | Princes Corner PA USA | under umbrella under tree | Indirect,Outside,Picnic,Yard | ||
| Sat, 08/04/2012 12:00 PM Injured | 1 of 2 on roof | 0.0 | M | Dayton OH USA | http://www.wdtn.com/dpp/news/local/montgomery/ligh | working on roof | Direct hit,On a Roof,Outside,Work | |
| VideoPhoto Headlines from Montgomery County 1 killed, 5 injured in 3 car pileup One person was killed and five others injured in a three car & "Curiosity" lands on Mars after plummet In a show of technological wizardry, the robotic explorer & Local Sikh leader reacts to shooting Sehbi said he was shocked when he heard the news, and like & Mangold places 10th in weightlifting Mangold pulled off both her lifts, with 135 kilograms in the & One killed in motorcycle crash A police officer tells 2 News it's the worst motorcycle crash & More Stories » Advertisement Lightning hits two men working on roof Updated: Saturday, 04 Aug 2012, 10:47 PM EDT Published : Saturday, 04 Aug 2012, 10:47 PM EDT DAYTON, Ohio (WDTN) - Two men were working on the roof of the home at 3101 East Fourth Street when they were hit by lightning as storms rolled through Saturday night. "It was a mind-shock. I thought he was dead," says Taylor Jenkins. Jenkins lives nearby and ran outside to tell the two men who were renovating the vacant home that a storm was about to hit. "I came out on my front porch and it was pouring rain and we were screaming and telling them to get off the roof. I guess they didn't hear us or they wasn't listening and dude was on the front of the roof and all you heard was this big explosion." he explains. He says what he saw next, will stay with him the rest of his life. "It hit one of the dudes. The other dude was in the other corner and it hit both of them. One fell off onto like the little roof and onto the grass and they pulled him over onto the sidewalk and it was bad, he was bleeding. It was just terrible," says Jenkins. Jenkins helped work on that same home Friday. He says he's lucky he wasn't up there when the lightning struck and he will be extra cautious in the future. "If I'm ever up on a roof and it starts sprinkling, I'm getting off the roof," comments Jenkins. And firefighters also have a warning for people. "In a severe lightning storm, get of the roofs immediately, don't worry about the water damage, protect yourself," explains Captain Bob Cockayne with the Dayton Fire Department. The two men were taken to Miami Valley Hospital with non life-threatening injuries. Police say they are lucky to be alive. | ||||||||
| Sat, 08/04/2012 04:00 PM Injured | 1 of 4 family members | 30.0 | M | Princes Corner PA USA | under umbrella under tree | Indirect,Outside,Picnic,Yard | ||
| Lightning Strike Injures Family In New Castle County August 3, 2012 11:04 PM Share this 4 View Comments Share CBS Local with your friends. Add us to your Timeline. What's this? Filed Under Local, News, Syndicated Local Related Tags Christiana Hospital, Cranston Hall, Delaware, Lightning Strike, Old Capitol Trail, Weather, Wilmington Check Out Calendar Shoot Hollywood Ink Soul Tryouts Conservative Celebs Victoria's Secret PRICES CORNER (CBS) Four family members enjoying a picnic at their home in New Castle County were reportedly injured by lightning Friday afternoon. It happened at about 4 p.m. at Cranston Hall Apartments on Old Capital Trail in Prices Corner. Officials believe lighting may have struck the umbrella the family was huddled under as they ate their dinner by a tree in front of the building. Ryan Girard, a maintenance worker at the apartment complex, saw the lightning bolt and ran to help the family. They were on the ground, completely in pain, screaming. Definitely something I ve never seen before, Girard said. We helped the woman back to the chair and she said the whole right side of her body was numb. The victims, a 30-year-old man, a 28-year-old woman who was reportedly pregnant, and a seven and 1-year-old boy were taken to Christiana Hospital and treated for minor injuries. They are listed in stable condition, according to authorities. | ||||||||
| Fri, 08/03/2012 04:30 PM Injured | 2 of 4 family members | 28.0 | F | Princes Corner PA USA | under umbrella under tree | Insurance,Outside,Picnic,Yard | ||
| A lightning strike sends a family of four to the hospital in Wilmington, New Castle County, Delaware. And for the second time this week, one of the victims is a pregnant woman. County dispatchers confirmed to NBC10 that two adults and two children were under a tree Friday afternoon when lightning hit. They were eating dinner, according to Delaware Online. The family was outside the Cranston Hill Apartments on Old Capitol Trail. A witness told the newspaper that the lightning hit, sending the family's umbrella up over their heads. According to the paper, the woman's right arm was red and she was complaining of some numbness. One of the children, a little boy, was shook up and crying. We did confirm that everyone is expected to be OK. The family is being checked out at Christiana Hospital and they will probably be released this evening. PHOTOS AND VIDEOS Lightning Strikes 4 People in Delaware More Photos and Videos On Wednesday, a lightning strike along the Jersey Shore sent a pregnant woman and three other family members, including one of her children, to the hospital. A storm moved into Wildwood quickly that day and lightning struck near the family as it huddled under some umbrellas. No one was seriously hurt. "They just had some tingling in their hands and arms." Here's the NBC10 Interactive Radar. You can track severe weather as it moves through portions of the viewing area. You can also sign up for our weather text alerts to get the latest information on severe weather watches, warning and alerts. Text PHIWEATHER to 639710. Data rates do apply. | ||||||||
| Fri, 08/03/2012 06:00 PM Injured | 2 of 8 | 0.0 | U | Fayetteville GA USA | at metal table in backyard | Indirect,Metal,Outside,Picnic,Yard | ||
| Atlanta weather | Storms pound area; 8 injured in Fayette County ShareThis PrintE-mail By David Ibata and Angel K. Brooks The Atlanta Journal-Constitution Powerful thunderstorms rolled through the metro Atlanta area Thursday evening, and eight people suffered minor injuries after a lightning strike in Fayette County. Enlarge photo A tree fell on the main dining room of Fox Brothers BBQ in the Candler Park neighborhood of Atlanta during Thursday's storms. Credit: Tony Thomas / Channel 2 Action News More Atlanta/Fulton news » Rain shuts down big weekend repaving project on I-285 Fulton deputies hunt for inmate Tonight's Powerball: $181 million Fetus found in Alpharetta freezer Atlanta/South Fulton North Fulton The storms brought down trees and knocked out power for thousands as forecasters issued a flash flood warning for parts of Fulton and DeKalb counties. In Fayette County, a family was sitting under an awning when lightning struck a house in the 400 block of Hilo Road, the fire department said. Eight people were taken to a hospital with minor injuries, and the house sustained approximately $1,000 worth of damage, Channel 2 Action News reported. | ||||||||
| Fri, 08/03/2012 12:00 PM Injured | 1 of 8 | 0.0 | U | Fayetteville GA USA | at metal table in backyard | Indirect,Metal,Outside,Picnic,Yard | ||
| ATLANTA -- Strong thunderstorms popped up around Metro Atlanta Thursday evening, leaving some damage in their wake. PHOTO GALLERY | August Storms According to reports from Fayette County, eight people went to a local hospital after lightning struck the backyard table where they were sitting. The family's injuries were non-life-threatening. This strike happened on the 400 block of Hilo Road in Fayetteville. The lightning also caused a small electrical fire in a room but the home didn't sustain any serious damage. In Atlanta, a tree crashed through the roof of Fox Brothers BBQ in Candler Park. Diners managed to get out of the way in time to avoid injury. The restaurant will be closed Friday for clean up. | ||||||||
| Wed, 08/01/2012 12:30 AM Injured | 4 of 4 family members | 0.0 | U | Wildwood NJ USA | at the beach | Beach,Indirect,Outside,Umbrella | ||
| Wed, 08/01/2012 12:30 AM Injured | 1 of 4 family members | 0.0 | U | Wildwood NJ USA | at the beach | Beach,Indirect,Outside,Umbrella | ||
| Lightning Sends Pregnant Woman, 3 Others to Hospital in Wildwood New Jersey A lightning hit on the beach in Wildwood, New Jersey sends four family members to the hospital, including a pregnant woman and her child By Karen Araiza and Ted Greenberg | Thursday, Aug 2, 2012 | Updated 1:15 AM EDTView Comments (3) | Email | Print NBC10Philadelphia.com- Rosemary Connors A lightning strike on a Wildwood beach sends four people to the hospital. One of them is a pregnant woman. All four were treated and released from the hospital. advertisement A lightning hit on the beach in Wildwood, New Jersey sends a family of four to the hospital, including a pregnant woman. "They're shaken up," Josh Rinesmith told NBC10's Ted Greenberg. His pregnant sister and her child were among the family members taken to the hospital, as a precaution. The family is vacationing from Mechanicsburg, Pa. They were at the Cedar Avenue beach around 12:30 p.m when the torrential rain moved through. "The storm came up quickly," Rinesmith said. "Lightning struck around an umbrella they were standing under." Fire Chief Christopher D'Amico tells NBC10 that no one took a direct hit from the lightning strike. "They just had some tingling in their hands and arms." The lighting strike prompted lifeguard to immediately clear people off the beaches. PHOTOS AND VIDEOS Lightning Sends 4 People to Hosptial in... Torrential Rains Soaking SJ More Photos and Videos "It happened so fast, it kind of came out of nowhere. It was raining like crazy and then all of a sudden you heard a big crack of lightning and everybody started running," said Jim Ambrose from Greenville, Pa. He said it was the loudest thing he's ever heard. "Sounded like a gunshot going off." | ||||||||
| Wed, 08/01/2012 12:30 AM Injured | 3 of 4 family members | 0.0 | U | Wildwood NJ USA | at the beach | Beach,Indirect,Outside,Umbrella | ||
| Wed, 08/01/2012 12:30 AM Injured | 2 of 4 family members | 0.0 | U | Wildwood NJ USA | at the beach | Beach,Indirect,Outside,Umbrella | ||
| Tue, 07/31/2012 12:00 PM Killed | fisherman | 0.0 | M | Palawan Phillippines | http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/story/267536/news/r | Outside | ||
| Fisherman in Palawan killed after being struck by lightning July 31, 2012 10:50am 0 0 1 4 A fisherman was killed after being struck by lightning in Palawan province on Monday, a report of radio dzBB said. The fisherman was about to board his banca when the incident occurred on an island in Busuanga town, radio dzBB's Palawan affiliate James Viernes reported on Tuesday. The initial investigation showed that the fisherman, identified only as Edmundo, was walking along the shore and was about to board his boat when lightning struck. He was rushed to the mainland but was declared dead on arrival at a hospital there. - VVP, GMA News | ||||||||
| Tue, 07/31/2012 12:00 PM Injured | 1 of 3 | 0.0 | U | Milport PA USA | at Potter County Fair | Outside | ||
| VideoPhoto Must-See Video Police seize drugs worth up to $525M Australian police have seized 558 kilograms (1,230 pounds) of & Plane lands safely after bird strike A United Airlines flight has landed safely after colliding with& Video: Message in bottle crosses ocean A message sent by two Canadian sisters was discovered by a & NASA to Mars rover: 'Stick the landing' It's NASA's most ambitious and expensive Mars mission yet -- & Video: Pizzeria ghost caught on camera? A pizzeria in Louisiana says it is experiencing some paranormal& Advertisement Three injured by PA lightning strike Updated: Tuesday, 31 Jul 2012, 6:25 PM EDT Published : Tuesday, 31 Jul 2012, 6:25 PM EDT Mark Parrotte Posted by: Eli George MILPORT, PA. (WIVB) - A child and two adults were hurt when lightning struck the Potter County Fairgrounds in Pennsylvania on Tuesday. No names or conditions have been released. That area is still recovering from last week's wicked storms. You can see photos of the damage those storms caused here. | ||||||||
| Tue, 07/31/2012 12:00 AM Injured | 2 of 3 | 0.0 | U | Milport PA USA | at Potter County Fair | Festival,Outside | ||
| Tue, 07/31/2012 12:00 AM Injured | 3 of 3 | 0.0 | U | Milport PA USA | at Potter County Fair | Festival,Outside | ||
| Mon, 07/30/2012 12:00 PM Injured | Roger Conner Jr | 0.0 | M | Destin FL USA | in house | Indirect,Indoors | ||
| Hello, I am writing to day to inform you I was struck yesterday Mon July 30th in Destin Fl inside my home. I know ou guys track these things so I figured I would report it. I was not injured that I know of but it did knock me to the ground and left me dazed for a while. | ||||||||
| Sun, 07/29/2012 12:00 PM Injured | woman in canoe | 23.0 | F | Manitoba's wilderness Canada | http://www.ctvnews.ca/canada/one-injured-after-lig | going to shore in canoe | Boat,On Water,Outside | |
| One injured after lightning strikes canoe in Manitoba Share: 2 Text: Share on print Share on email (0) RELATED STORIES Several injured after lightning hits Ontario festival The Canadian Press Published Tuesday, Jul. 31, 2012 10:22AM EDT Last Updated Tuesday, Jul. 31, 2012 2:44PM EDT BLOODVEIN, Man. -- An Ontario woman is recovering from injuries after she was struck by lightning while canoeing with six other people in Manitoba's wilderness. RCMP say a group of women and girls were on an organized camp trip and were paddling along the Bloodvein River near Lake Winnipeg on Sunday when a sudden storm approached. They were going to shore when the 23-year-old woman was hit by lightning. A 15-year-old girl, who was helping the woman pull their canoe to shore, also felt a jolt, said RCMP spokeswoman Sgt. Line Karpish. She "got a pretty good shock" but wasn't injured. Karpish said the group was well-equipped and managed to send out a GPS distress signal from a safety device. An emergency response co-ordination centre in Houston, Texas, then contacted the RCMP. Mounties initially asked for help from the military's rescue centre in Trenton, Ont. But officers quickly tracked down an available Manitoba government helicopter. Its pilot was eager to help. Two officers jumped on board and the search chopper quickly found the canoeists, just before nightfall. The group was waving frantically at the helicopter when it arrived, about two hours after the SOS went out. The pilot was able to land in a nearby clearing and the woman was taken to a nearby nursing station. Karpish said she was then air-lifted to a Winnipeg hospital as a precaution. "She's lucky, very lucky." The girl remained with the group. "She felt she was not hurt and wanted to carry on with the trip. By all appearances, she seemed just fine." Karpish said such remote rescues don't always have happy endings. Several factors, including the group's GPS device and the available helicopter, fortunately came together. "This was bang-on the best case scenario we could ever ask for. Sometimes everything goes wrong but sometimes everything goes right." Read more: http://www.ctvnews.ca/canada/one-injured-after-lightning-strikes-canoe-in-manitoba-1.898976#ixzz22FcOQIzE | ||||||||
| Sun, 07/29/2012 12:00 PM Injured | 2 of 3 | 0.0 | U | Milport PA USA | at Potter County Fair | Festival,Outside | ||
| Sun, 07/29/2012 05:00 PM Injured | Ferren Rice | 0.0 | M | Summit county UT USA | hiking near Amethyst Lake | N/A | Critical,Hiking,Near Water,Outside,Water | |
| SUMMIT COUNTY A man was struck by lightning while hiking Saturday evening. According to the Summit County Sheriff's Office, around 5:00 p.m., an unidentified man was hiking near Amethyst Lake. He was struck by lightning and later transported to a local hospital in critical condition by medical helicopter. Police have not released the name of the man or the hospital he was transferred to. Amethyst Lake a day-long hike from Christmas Meadow, according to the Summit County Sheriff's Office. This strike comes roughly a week after 24- year-old Jesse King and his dog were struck and killed by lightning near Row Lake while on a fishing trip. King sought shelter under a tree, which was then struck by lighting. The NOAA recommends that when camping or hiking in an open area during a storm, folks should avoid open fields, stay away from tall isolated trees, camp in a valley or low ravine and to stay away from water and wet things and metal objects like poles or fences. He was struck by lightning, and tonight, he's talking to ABC 4 News. Ferren rice's dog was killed when 300 kilo-volts of electricity surged through the two of them, but Ferren lived to describe the moments of horror. "I definitely feel blessed," rice said. Over the past two weeks, he s been in and out of the hospital. "They did a lot of tests, x-rays a lot of blood work," he told us. After lightning struck his right leg, went up through his left shoulder and out his left leg, rice is regaining feeling in parts of his body. He's also had skin grafts on his arm, but doctors say he's going to be ok. "It s just a matter of time to relearn to do everything but it was a major electrical voltage that went through me so things are a little... Weird," rice said. The weekend of July 28th, Ferren, his sister amber and his dog Jovie went backpacking in the high Uintas. The crew had clear skies throughout the first part of the trip, and then in a matter of minutes the weather changed, drastically. "Out of nowhere, the winds picked up, lightning started flashing," rice said. Ferren and his sister grabbed all their stuff and took shelter under a tree. He said he was bending over to grab a poncho when the lightning struck. "I just felt paralyzed in that position and fell backwards. I was conscious, only had control of my right arm and my head," he said. Struggling to take a breath, Ferren said his mind went straight to his family. "I was doing everything in my power to breathe and I couldn't breathe, they were the first things that came across my mind I m never going to see my boy, I m never going to see my wife, this is the end, that's it," he said. But then amber rushed to Ferren s side. When she realized he wasn't breathing, she started rescue breaths, and continued until he was breathing on his own again. "She was incredible. It's amazing how instincts just kicked in, she didn't panic, she did what she had to do," rice said. Ferren's dog Jovie was not so fortunate. She was right by ferren's right leg and was killed by the strike. He credits her, his sister and the strangers that helped them with his life. "It worked out the way it was supposed to I guess, like I was meant to be here still. If any one of those things goes a different way, then there's a good chance that I m not," he said. Rice works for an extreme sports store, so being is his passion. Once he recovers... He says he'll be right back to it. | ||||||||
| Sat, 07/28/2012 12:00 PM unknown | Staying safe through storm season | 0.0 | U | CO USA | http://www.summitdaily.com/article/20120729/NEWS/1 summitdaily.com | the lightning squat again | Bad Safety info | |
| Staying safe through storm season Tips to mitigating lightning risks By Kathryn Turner summit daily news Email Print ENLARGE Lightning over Dillon Reservoir recently. Special to the Daily / Darren Foti The biggest part of staying safe from a lightning strike is to keep out of harms way in the first place. But, should one find themselves in a danger zone like above tree line, or on a river or lake here are some tips on mitigating risks. This time of year, you can almost set your clock to the afternoon storms, said Dave Miller, Keystone Science School's school programs director and trained wilderness first responder. If you're going to summit, or be above tree line, it's very important to start early. If you're stuck on a mountain when bad weather sets in, try to get to lower grounds, or find a spot to hide inside the woods. If lightning strikes, it will most likely hit the trees, rather than you, Miller said. Make sure the trees are healthy, because in Summit County a thunder storm probably means wind, and you don't want to get hit by a dead, falling tree, he said. While they may look cozy, shallow caves should be avoided lightning tends to find the path of least resistance, Miller said, and if it hits a rock you're hiding under, it will go straight through the rock (and then through you) to the ground. If hikers and bikers are close to their cars when the weather hits, it's a relatively safe place to hide, Miller said. This is another case of the path of least resistance; It tends to go through the metal around the car, he said. Another method of protection if caught outside is the lightning position a crouching pose with heels touching. It may be uncomfortable to hold, but if there's a ground strike and it goes up one leg, it should then just pass to the other and back down, rather than affecting the nervous system. In order to measure how far away a strike is from you, use the flash to crash method. On average, sound travels at about one mile every five seconds, Miller said. If you see the lightning, you can count to five and know about how many miles away it is. But remember, lightning can actually precede a storm by about 10 miles. Strikes are not necessarily in the back or middle of a storm, but everywhere, Miller said. Staying indoors is the safest place to be, although cell hones and electrical appliances can be dangerous. There has also been known strikes when someone's in the shower, Miller said. If someone is hit, CPR is the most successful way to revive a patient, Miller said. The biggest side effects in survivors are psychological, like depression, he said. Miller, who has led numerous wilderness excursions, feels like he has had some close calls, but never any problems. People shouldn't be scared to enjoy their lives, but be aware of how to mitigate the risks, he said. | ||||||||
| Sat, 07/28/2012 03:00 PM Injured | construction worker | 0.0 | M | Mobile County Fairgrounds AL USA | http://www.local15tv.com/news/local/story/Lightnin | installing insulation inside a building | Construction site,Indirect,Indoors,Work | |
| Lightning Strikes Construction Worker Video Construction Worker Struck by Lightning Construction Worker Struck by Lightning Reported by: Local 15 News Staff Email: local15@local15tv.com Print Story Published: 7/28 4:21 pm Share Updated: 7/28 11:37 pm (MOBILE, Ala.) A construction worker was struck by lightning near the Mobile County Fairgrounds Saturday afternoon. The man was installing insulation inside a building on the construction site of the new Hallmark Apartment complex on Cody Road. More than a dozen construction workers and electricians were on-site when the lightning storm swept in around 3:00 p.m. Saturday. Workers told Local 15 they saw a blinding flash, heard a deafening bang, and then smelled something burning. They found their fellow construction worker laying on the floor and called 911. It sounded like a cannon, construction worker Tommy Ray Carter said. We were in the next building over. I m feeling real lucky it wasn t me, but I feel real sorry for the guy that got hit. Firefighters and paramedics were on the scene in minutes. The man appeared conscious as EMTs wheeled him out and into a waiting ambulance. I talked to the paramedics and he assured me he was going to be alright, electrician foreman Charles Frazier told Local 15 News. The swift and powerful storm knocked out power in nearby areas, including streetlights and businesses in Semmes. | ||||||||
| Fri, 07/27/2012 12:00 PM Killed | 4 hikers killed | 0.0 | U | Pieniny Mountain Range Poland | Hiking,Outside | |||
| Polish hikers found dead, lightning strike suspected Link this Share this Digg Email Print Fri Jul 27, 2012 6:58pm IST (Refiles to fix typo) (Reuters) - Four hikers were killed, probably by a lightning strike, on a tourist track in Poland's Pieniny mountain range, police told local media. The four, a married couple in their 50s, their daughter and her boyfriend, were reported missing on Wednesday evening when they did not return from a walk in the mountains on Poland's border with Slovakia. The hikers, all from Warsaw, were found dead early on Friday. | ||||||||
| Fri, 07/27/2012 unknown | Larry Oberti | 0.0 | M | Novi MI USA | http://theoaklandpress.com/articles/2012/07/29/new | leaning on truck | Indirect,Outside,Touching a vehicle | |
| Share on facebookShare on twitterShare on stumbleuponShare on pinterest More Sharing Services 0 Novi resident Larry Oberti was reportedly struck by lightning Friday while leaning against a pickup truck, according to Fox 2. Oberti was reportedly speaking with his neighbor when he was jolted. "I was just shaking like a leaf," Oberti told Fox 2. "I don't remember anything of it." Oberti reportedly suffered only slight pain and a burn on his hand and arm where he made contact with the truck when he collapsed after being hit by lightning. NOVI, Mich. (WJBK) - A Novi man is recovering after being struck by lightning during Friday's storms. He was leaning up against a truck when he was hit. Fox 2 talked to the victim and a friend who saw it happen. Click on the video player to watch Maurielle Lue's report. "I heard a big 'kaboom' and next thing you know I'm weak," said Larry Oberti. "I was just shaking like a leaf." Larry and his neighbor, Lisa, may be a bit shaky on the details, but one thing they know for sure - just before Friday's big storm, Larry was struck by lightning. "I don't remember anything of it," Larry told Fox 2. "I just got jolted." Larry was leaning on a truck talking to Lisa when it happened. They knew the storm was coming but it hadn't hit yet. Only a rumble of thunder in the distance. Suddenly, they were surrounded by white hot light. It's something Lisa says you have to experience to explain. "There's pressure everywhere and especially the chest. It was scary," she said. "He started walking at me and saying, 'Help me, help me,' and I started screaming for help." Larry collapsed on the ground. He says the grill on the truck glowed orange. Dispatchers instructed Lisa not to touch Larry. Doctors say he's lucky to escape with nothing more than a little pain and a few bald spots. "I have a slight burn on my hand and then down my arm any place that touched the truck," he said. "There's no hair. It's gone." | ||||||||
| Fri, 07/27/2012 12:00 PM Killed | Tanker set on fire | 0.0 | M | Lubuan Borneo | http://www.theborneopost.com/2012/07/27/lightning- | Boat | ||
| Lightning blamed for tanker inferno by Elton Gomes and Adrian Nandu. Posted on July 27, 2012, Friday The fire on board the tanker MV Bunga Alpinia. One crewman dies, four others missing as fire sets off three explosions LABUAN: A crewman was killed and four others were missing in a fire which police believe was caused by a lightning strike and which set off some three explosions on board a tanker at the Petronas Chemicals Methanol Sdn Bhd terminal here at about 2.30am yesterday. Three other persons were injured in the incident on board MV Bunga Alpinia, which is owned by Malaysian International Shipping Corporation (MISC). Sabah Police Commissioner Datuk Hamza Taib confirmed the dead as Shahril Azmi Baharudin, a 28-year-old Malaysian from Malacca, whose body was found on a floating oil drum near the jetty and taken to the Labuan Nucleus Hospital. The missing crewmen were identified as Malaysians Muhammad Nazrin Khamasani, 20, from Kuala Lumpur, Mohd Hanafi Khalil, 24, from Malacca and Zahari Hassim, 46, from Negeri Sembilan, and Filipino Colanggoy Errol Calaluan, 22. He said the 38,000DWT chemical tanker which is 172.87 metres long and 32 metres wide had a total of 29-strong crew, including the captain, and at the time of the incident, 24 of the crew members were working. Petronas Chemicals Group Berhad president cum chief executive officer Dr Abdul Hapiz Abdullah said the rest of the crew on board the tanker were evacuated before the first explosion. He said that after the second stronger explosion at 7am, all the employees within this the methanol terminal were evacuated. After the second explosion, we had issued a warning for around 1km radius of PML area to be evacuated immediately. The impact of the explosion had shaken some of the facilities within the terminal and broke some of the glass in the building and affected the ceilings, he said. Three loud blasts rocked the island and the Bunga Alpinia was left about 80 percent destroyed, according to Labuan police chief Saiman Kasran. There was heavy rain and lightning at that time, he said. We presume the fire was caused by a lightning strike, he said. Labuan Fire and Rescue Department director Zainal Madasin said 71 personnel were involved in fighting the fire with nine engines. Zainal said the search-and-rescue operation was temporarily halted at 6 pm for the breaking of the Ramadan fast and would resume soon after. He said the 37,000-metric ton tanker was being loaded with methanol when the fire broke out. Based on the information, they had just loaded around 6,000 metric tons of methanol to the vessel then, he said. MISC said the respective families and next-of-kin of the crew members have been informed. A hotline has been set up for the affected family members who want to obtain more information. MISC said the 24 crew members brought ashore are safe. Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) coordinating officer Lt Comm Azmi Mohd Dahan said the three persons injured in the incident are a Petronas employee, a member of the public and a crew member. MMEA Sabah and Labuan First Admiral M. Karunanithi said they were trying to get closer to the tanker but intense heat and fears of more explosions were slowing them down. He said MMEA had tried to tow the tanker out of the wharf with a tugboat but the cable was burnt. He said the tanker later broke loose and drifted about 20m away from industries along the shoreline. For the moment, it is under control as it is sitting on a shallow seabed and efforts are continuing to put out the fire, he said. Share this: Read more: http://www.theborneopost.com/2012/07/27/lightning-blamed-for-tanker-infernoupdate/#ixzz24qUEIV5s | ||||||||
| Thu, 07/26/2012 12:00 PM Killed | Tanker | 0.0 | U | Kuala Lumpur Malaysia | on a tanker | Boat | ||
| Malaysian tanker fire and explosion during thunderstorm kills 1 crew member, injures 3 others Associated Press - Flames rise from a Malaysian tanker carrying methanol gas following an explosion at a jetty on Labuan island, eastern Malaysia, Thursday, July 26, 2012. Police say the tanker belonged to the national shipping company MISC has exploded after being struck by lightning, killing one crew member. Four others are still missing. Text Size PrintE-mailReprints By Associated Press, KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia Malaysian police say an explosion and fire possibly caused by a lightning strike killed one crew member of a tanker docked off Borneo island and injured three others. District police chief Saiman Kasran says the tanker was set ablaze at a jetty while carrying methanol on Labuan island near Borneo s coast early Thursday. 1 Comments Weigh InCorrections? Personal Post He says authorities have brought the fire under control and recovered the body of a Malaysian. A separate police statement says 24 Malaysians and Filipinos had been aboard the vessel owned by national shipping company MISC. At least one person remained missing. The statement says the cause of the explosion has not been determined but adds that witnesses reported loud thunder before the fire broke out. Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. | ||||||||
| Thu, 07/26/2012 12:00 PM Injured | Chris Daugherty | 27.0 | M | Neson county KY USA | http://www.wave3.com/story/19134525/man-recovering | opening front door | N/A | Door,Indirect,Outside |
| NELSON COUNTY, KY (WAVE) - Lightning sent a man to the hospital after strong storms pounded parts of the area Thursday night. Chris Daugherty told WAVE 3 he doesn't have visible bruises or wounds because he says lightning struck his house as he opened his front door. "When I grabbed the handle it knocked me into the brick walI. I saw a flash of light. Like ambient white light over my shoulder and had to call my wife in the house for help," Daugherty said. When he made it into the house Daugherty said he could barely breathe and felt disoriented. "It was like I had someone sitting on my chest and it kept compressing. All this pressure. It was something I had never felt before because I don't have heart problems." Daugherty's symptoms were not uncommon. The National Weather Service lists cardiac arrest as one of the primary medical conditions when lightning strikes a person or travels through a source. Nelson County EMS personnel transported Daugherty to the hospital. Doctors later released him overnight. When asked how he felt the day after, he replied "It's kind of an uncomfortable feeling, but I'm thankful that I have this feeling instead of no feeling at all." Lightning is a major cause of storm related deaths. A lightning strike can cause the heart to stop at the time of the injury, although some victims may appear to have a delayed death a few days later if they are resuscitated but have suffered irreversible brain damage, according to the National Weather Service. Approximately 10% of people who are struck by lightning are killed, according to NWS Storm Data. Copyright 2012 WAVE News. All rights reserved. | ||||||||
| Thu, 07/26/2012 04:30 PM Injured | Kisten Everhart | 0.0 | F | Mount Vernon OH USA | http://www.mountvernonnews.com/local/12/07/27/moun | walking | Outside,Walking | |
| Mount Vernon woman struck by lightning By Alan Reed, Mount Vernon News July 27, 2012 12:49 pm EDT Share Print E-mail MOUNT VERNON A young woman was taken to Knox Community Hospital by an emergency squad late Thursday afternoon from an apparent lighting strike during the afternoon thunderstorm. Angie Mickley, an employee of Envy Salon at 69 Mansfield Avenue, called 9-1-1 sometime between 4 and 5 p.m. after seeing a young woman reportedly eight months pregnant holding her stomach. Mickley was sitting outside the salon and saw the woman walk by the building whose mother then came running inside, claiming her daughter had been struck by lightning. Mickley identified the woman as being Kirsten Everhart. ADVERTISEMENT LJJA Martial Arts Everhart reportedly began having contractions and laid down in a car before an ambulance arrived. No information was available from the Mount Vernon Fire Department. Read more: Mount Vernon woman struck by lightning http://www.mountvernonnews.com/local/12/07/27/mount-vernon-woman-struck-by-lightning#ixzz2229KT0dO | ||||||||
| Thu, 07/26/2012 06:30 PM Killed | Kathlyn Friend | 67.0 | F | Jessamine county KY USA | http://www.lex18.com/news/damage-injuries-reported | installing watering system for cattle | Delayed Death,Farming,Outside | |
| Damage, Injuries Reported In Wake Of Severe Storms Posted: Jul 27, 2012 10:26 AM Updated: Jul 27, 2012 2:45 PM Rating: 1 2 3 4 5 0.0 (0 votes) There are reports of widespread damage and injuries after a series of severe storms moved across the state Thursday night and early Friday morning. In Jessamine County, a 67-year-old woman was struck by lightning while in a field on her farm near Crenshaw. She was transported to UK Hospital for treatment. A person in Nelson County was also hurt when lightning hit his house as he was holding a door handle. A barn fire in Scott County is being blamed on a lighting strike. In Versailles, trees were reported down after wind gusts of 70 MPH moved through the area. In Fayette County, there were numerous reports of trees down throughout the county. Trees were reported down on a power line on Hidden Springs Road, and other areas with trees down along Russell Cave Road. There is a slight chance for more severe weather in the Bluegrass Friday. LEX 18's Storm Tracker Weather team will be tracking the potential storms and will have updates as warranted Kathlyn Friend, 67, a Richmond attorney struck by lightning Thursday night, died Saturday afternoon at the University of Kentucky Chandler Hospital. Woody Friend said his sister died after being removed from life support. She had been in critical condition since being injured. Kathlyn Friend was struck about 6:30 p.m. Thursday while she was installing a watering system for cattle on a farm she owned in southern Jessamine County. Woody Friend said his sister and her son, who was helping her, had one section of pipe left to put in place she was struck. Kathlyn Friend, a longtime attorney, ran for a seat on the Kentucky Court of Appeals in 1983 and 1991 but was defeated both times by Paul D. Gudgel of Lexington. Funeral arrangements are pending at Betts and West Funeral Home in Nicholasville. Jim Warren (859) 231-3255 Read more here: http://www.kentucky.com/2012/07/28/2275031/richmond-attorney-struck-by-lightning.html#storylink=cpy | ||||||||
| Wed, 07/25/2012 12:00 PM Killed | 2 killed | 0.0 | M | Gazipur India | ||||
| Two killed in lightning strike Advertisement Share Print E-mail Comment[ - ] Text [ + ]STAFF WRITER 11:56 HRS IST Ghazipur/Badaun, July 25 (PTI) Two persons were killed after being struck by lightning, police said today. Chandrabhushan Singh Kushwaha (17), a Class X student, was killed after being struck by lightning in Gamhar area of Ghazipur district yesterday, they said. In another incident, Nathulal (40) was killed after being struck by lightning in Bisauli area of Badaun district today, Senior Superintendent of Police Manjil Saini said. | ||||||||
| Tue, 07/24/2012 01:30 PM Injured | utility worker | 0.0 | M | Edinburg Scotland | Outside,Work | |||
| Lightning strike sends utility worker to hospital By Alex Bridges -- abridges@nvdaily.com Lightning struck a gas line near Edinburg and the burst sent a utility worker to a local hospital Tuesday afternoon. The Shenandoah County Fire and Rescue Department received a report around 1:30 p.m. that lightning struck a line operated by Washington Gas near Edinburg, according to Fire Marshal David Ferguson. The strike occurred between George's Chicken and Kennedy Konstruction Kompany on Senedo Road. Crews from the Mt. Jackson Rescue Squad and Edinburg Fire Department responded with the county department. The utility worker was conscious when rescue personnel arrived, according to Ferguson. Crews took the worker to Shenandoah Memorial Hospital for further evaluation, Ferguson said. The lightning strike did not rupture the line or ignite the gas. The gas company evaluated the system and reported no impact to the equipment, Ferguson said. | ||||||||
| Tue, 07/24/2012 12:00 PM Killed | 4 killed in lightning in UP | 0.0 | U | Uttar Pradesh India | ||||
| Four people, including three children, were today killed after being hit by lightning as heavy rains lashed several parts of Uttar Pradesh. In Chandauli, three children were killed and two others received burn injuries when lightning struck them while they were playing under a tree at Kanera village in Sahabganj area, police said. District magistrate Pawan Kumar announced a compensation of Rs 1.50 lakh to next of the kins of the victims. Click here for Cloud Computing Also Read Related Stories News Now - Naveen demands stop of Polavaram project till SC disposes case - Surrendered militants appear before District Collector - Govt comes out with draft national policy for children - I had no role in Katara's killing: Vishal tells HC Meanwhile in Azamgarh, a man died after a lightning hit him while he was working in a field at Parsamanpur village in Kaptanganj area, police said. Ankinghat recorded 14 cm rainfall, followed by Balrampur at 12 cm and Bisauli 9 cm. | ||||||||
| Tue, 07/24/2012 11:00 AM Killed | Mary H Yoder | 36.0 | F | Garrett PA USA | http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/pregnant-am Lightning kills pregnant Pennsylvania Amish woman | taking shelter under a tree | Outside,Taking Shelter,Under Trees | |
| GARRETT, Pa. A pregnant Amish woman picking berries in the woods near her Pennsylvania home was killed by lightning on her due date. The fetus also died. State police say 36-year-old Mary H. Yoder was with her husband and two children late Tuesday morning when a storm moved in. Yoder took shelter under a pine tree while her husband and the children ducked under a different tree. 1 Comments Weigh InCorrections? Personal Post Police say lightning struck a few minutes later, killing Yoder and her fetus. Trooper Steven Limani tells the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review that Tuesday was the due date. Police are investigating. Garrett is about 75 miles southeast of Pittsburgh. Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. | ||||||||
| Mon, 07/23/2012 01:30 PM Injured | camp counselor, 1 of 2 | 18.0 | F | Sandyston NJ USA | http://www.njherald.com/story/19090623/two-struck- | inside cabin | Camping,Indirect,Indoors,Ungrounded Shelter | |
| Cabin at 4H camp hit by lightning Posted: Jul 23, 2012 2:05 PM EDT Updated: Jul 23, 2012 3:54 PM EDT Google Maps Photo by Amy Herzog/New Jersey Herald - Rutgers 4-H Camp Director Jim Tavares, far left in black jacket, shows where lighting struck the tree behind him and then followed a root, center, until it made contact with Cabin 9 during a thunderstorm. Photo by Amy Herzog/New Jersey Herald - An ambulance leaves Lindley G. Cook 4-H Camp where lightning struck a tree and went to a nearby cabin. A counselor and camper were taken to Newton Medical Center. Related Links Skylands Skywatch Forecast Rooftop Weather & Cameras Hour by Hour Futurecast Interactive Radar Top News Headlines Shooting suspect in court with orange-red hair Event to aid local family of woman hurt in Colo. shooting Movie massacre suspect mum; Batman mask found A look at the lives of Colorado shooting victims Cabin at 4H camp hit by lightning NCAA slams Penn State, fines it $60 million By LYNDSAY CAYETANA BOUCHAL lbouchal@njherald.com SANDYSTON Lightning struck a large pine tree 25 feet from a bunkhouse and went into the foundation of a cabin at the Lindley G. Cook 4-H Camp in Stokes State Forest shortly after 1:30 p.m., sending an 18-year-old female counselor and a 12-year-old camper to Newton Medical Center, a camp official said. The two victims were taken to the hospital as a precaution but were otherwise conscious and alert, said Camp Director Jim Tavares. The camper said she felt tingling in her foot, he said. "Initially, it was a normal thunderstorm, then it started to intensify and we started to hear lightning strikes closer," Tavares said. When he and other counselors heard lightning strike, they ran to the cabins, where they discovered Cabin No. 9 was hit. "The (campers and counselors) were making friendship bracelets and (the two) got a jolt," Tavares said. "For the most part the young lady is fine. She was scared at first, but she was laughing by the end." No further information was immediately available on the identity of the victims. As of 2:45 p.m., the camp was still in the process of contacting the girls' parents and was not yet releasing further information. "You can see a path in the ground where the lightning zigzagged and hit the edge of the cabin," Tavares said. "Anytime it rains, we get all of our children inside immediately. We want to make sure they're safe and sound." About 14 campers and one other counselor were in the 1951 wood cabin when it was struck. The lightning traveled through the roots of the red pine, which is more than 30 feet tall, and struck the cement foundation of the structure. The lightning was accompanied by hail and occurred as a thunderstorm started making its way south into the area. Tavares said today was the first day of camp for the children involved. The 4-H Camp holds six, one-week camp sessions every summer, with a new session starting every Monday. Herald Staff Writer Eric Obernauer contributed to this report. | ||||||||
| Mon, 07/23/2012 12:00 PM Killed | Frank Baeta | 71.0 | M | CA USA | camping | N/A | Camping,Ground Strike,Outside,Tree,Under Trees | |
| While camping in the mountains he loved, our devoted husband, father, and papa, Frank, died suddenly on July 23, 2012. Owner of the successful plumbing business, Bath & Kitchen Plumbing Service, for 40 years, he could fix anything. He is survived by his loving wife of 51 years, Pat and his daughters Christine Baeta (Brent Orick), Cheryl Arruda (Rich) and Cindy Stieferman (Chris). He will be forever missed by his 8 grandchildren, Courtney, Christopher, Kyle, Kody, Reid, Ryan, Cole and Camryn. He is also survived by brothers, a sister, nieces, nephews, and many devoted customers and friends. A rosary will be held on Tuesday July 31, 2012, at 6:30 P.M., at St. Elizabeth Catholic Church, 1817 12th Street, Sacto., CA. A Funeral Mass will be held Wednesday August 1, 2012, at 10:00 a.m., also at St. Elizabeth. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made to Shriners Hospital for Children of Northern California. Read more here: http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/sacbee/obituary.aspx?pid=158787732#storylink=cpy | ||||||||
| Sun, 07/22/2012 12:00 PM unknown | Lightning: All Things Considered, It s Best Not to | 0.0 | U | CT USA | http://www.theday.com/article/20120721/INTERACT010 theday.com | the squat again !!! | Bad Safety info,Education | |
| While kayaking down the Hudson River one summer afternoon a few years ago, midway through a two-week, 300-plus-mile voyage from the Canadian border to the Statue of Liberty, my buddy Dan Bendor and I glanced nervously at the darkening sky. Don t like those clouds, I said, quickening the pace. Dan nodded. Better start looking for a place to hole up. How about that island? I replied, waving my paddle toward a pile of rocks less than a mile away. Let s go! As if we needed further encouragement, a low rumble of thunder reverberated through the river valley, and by the time we reached land 10 minutes later rain pelted in sheets. We dragged our boats out of the water and hunched helplessly while the first flashes of lightning pierced the growing blackness. Sit on your PFD! Dan cried. I tore off my life jacket and tried to balance with my feet in the air. We counted the seconds between flashes and thunderclaps. Five seconds a mile away & four seconds uh-oh, definitely heading our way two seconds & FLASH/BAM! We never saw the strike, but it had to be less than 100 yards away. FLASH/BAM! FLASH/BAM! FLASH/BAM! Bolts exploded all around us. I squeezed my eyes shut and covered my ears. FLASH/BAM! FLASH & BAM! FLASH &&. BAM! FLASH &&&& BAM! One second 1,000 yards. Two seconds 2,000 yards. Three seconds, more than half a mile. I opened my eyes and looked over at Dan. We smiled. Don t move yet, he ordered. We held our uncomfortable poses for another 15 minutes, and then dared to stand up so we could watch the storm recede north. I never confirmed definitively that sitting on a life jacket protects you from electrocution during a lightning storm, but as far as I was concerned on that terrifying afternoon, it worked. At any one time the earth experiences some 2,000 thunderstorms generating 100 lightning strikes per second, and according to the National Weather Service those bolts, which each carry charges of more than 100 million volts, kill an average of 73 people in the United States each year. Those odds may seem to confirm the old as likely as getting hit by lightning analogy but that s a bet you don t want to take when you re out there in a storm. Fellow adventurers who spend a lot of time outdoors, often far from shelter, can follow a few rules to reduce their chances of becoming a smoldering heap of cinders. If you can t get inside a closed building or car, find a low spot away from trees and crouch down. Obviously, if you re paddling miles offshore, you re screwed. If you re in a group, split up and stay as far apart as practical. Don t use a cellphone, radio or other electronic device. Wait at least 30 minutes after the lightning and thunder stops to resume paddling, hiking, running, biking or whatever else you were doing outside. If you re like me, several times a year you will have to take such evasive maneuvers. Just the other day a friend and I had to paddle like crazy to get ashore from Long Island Sound when a single dark cloud not in the forecast materialized off New London. As if it had eyes the cloud swerved directly toward us and we had to veer to Avery Point in Groton to avoid it. Luckily, we had enough time to change course. On other occasions I ve dodged bolts while climbing mountains, camping in forests, swimming in lakes that s a particularly scary situation and running on country roads. Once a fellow runner and I hunkered down in a barn for an hour or so, and when we finally loped back home passed a smoking tree that had just been struck. There s no question the National Weather Service has the best advice: There is no safe place outside when thunderstorms are in the area. If you hear thunder, you are likely within striking distance of the storm. Just remember, When Thunder Roars, Go Indoors! | ||||||||
| Sat, 07/21/2012 07:00 PM Killed | Jesse King | 24.0 | M | Row Lake UT USA | http://www.deseretnews.com/article/865559445/Wayne Wayne County man killed by lightning | taking shelter under a tree | Camping,Dogs,Indirect,Outside,Taking Shelter,Under Trees | |
| Wayne County man killed by lightning PrintFont [+] [-] Leave a comment » Published: Monday, July 23 2012 3:39 p.m. MDT Summary A 24-year-old Wayne County man and his dog were killed after being struck by lightning while on a fishing trip over the weekend. You might also like Rescuers of lost hiker describe man's unbelievable survival July 13, 2012 Man found after three weeks lost in Escalante July 13, 2012 Cathy Free: Free Lunch: Watching the stars come out on the silver screen in Escalante May 16, 2012 ESCALANTE, Garfield County A 24-year-old Wayne County man and his dog were killed after being struck by lightning while on a fishing trip over the weekend. Jesse King, 24, of Bicknell, and his dog were at Row Lake on the west side of Boulder Mountain about 7 p.m. Saturday when a storm rolled through the region, according to the Garfield County Sheriff's Office. King and his dog took shelter under a nearby tree. They were both killed instantly when lightning hit the tree, the sheriff's office said. King's wife, who was at their campsite nearby, found his body. "King did everything possible to try to keep himself and his dog safe, and there was nothing that could have been done to prevent their death," said sheriff's deputy Ray Gardner. He is survived by his wife, Maddy Rowland King. | ||||||||
| Sat, 07/21/2012 12:00 PM unknown | Giant storm on Saturn illuminates daytime blue lig | 0.0 | U | USA | http://www.examiner.com/article/giant-storm-on-sat | Blue lightning on saturn | Education,Science | |
| NASA says they captured a rare scene during a storm on Saturn last year, the largest storm ever seen up-close on the planet. The Cassini orbiter captured daytime lightning on Saturn as bright blue spots inside the giant storm that raged on the planet for some 200 days. Cassini spotted the daytime lightning while observing the Saturn storm on March 6, 2011. View slideshow: Gaint storm rages on Saturn NASA just recently unveiled the new Saturn lightning photos on Wednesday, adding that the images came as a big surprise. Ulyana Dyudina, a Cassini imaging team associate based at the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena said, We didn t think we d see lightning on Saturn s day side, only its night side." Discovery image of the developing giant storm on Saturn in December 2010. Photo credit: (NASA/Anthony Wesley ) Video: Storm captured on the planet Saturn The image shows a bluish spot in the middle of swirling clouds. According to NASA, the blue spots indicate flashes of lightning and mark the first time scientists have detected lightning in visible wavelengths on the side of Saturn illuminated by the Sun. The flash is about 100 miles in diameter when it exits the tops of the clouds. Scientists have gathered from this that lightning bolts originate in the clouds deeper down in Saturn's atmosphere where water droplets freeze. According to Space.com, the storm wrapped completely around Saturn at its peak and it is the longest-lived storm ever seen on the ringed planet. It began in December 2010 and ended in late June 2011. An analysis of the new images revealed that the energy from the visible lightning flashes alone could have spiked up to 3 billion watts over one second. That makes the daytime Saturn lightning on par with some of the strongest lightning flashes on Earth. NASA scientists are still investigating why the blue filter caught the lightning. They believe that it might be that the lightning was really blue or it might be that the short exposure of the camera in the blue filter makes the short-lived lightning easier to see. NASA's Cassini spacecraft launched in 1997 and has been orbiting Saturn since 2006. The spacecraft is currently in an extended mission that is expected to last through 2017. | ||||||||
| Sat, 07/21/2012 12:00 PM unknown | Shocking developments in lightning research | 0.0 | U | NM USA | http://www.dchieftain.com/2012/07/21/shocking-deve | New Mexico Tech Langmuir Lab for Atmospheric Research | N/A | Education,Science |
| Shocking developments in lightning research by Griffin Swartzell | July 21, 2012 | Filed under: News Despite how often lightning flashes, humans still know little about it. But at New Mexico Tech s Langmuir Laboratory for Atmospheric Research several miles out of town, scientists are researching lightning and discovering many things. A charge jumping from point to point is well-understood and can easily be replicated in the laboratory or in the home. The little jolt that comes when you rub your socks on a carpet, then touch something metal, is the same phenomenon that occurs with lightning. These both build up an electric field. Griffin Swartzell/El Defensor Chieftain: Physics graduate student Jake Trueblood and physics undergraduate Ryan Ashton prepare wire bobbins for the rockets that will trigger a flash of lightning. An electric field is similar to water in a pipe at pressure. When there is too strong a field in one place, the charge like water bursts and moves to somewhere with a weaker field, like when a water pipe bursts. However, according to NMT Associate Physics Professor Dr. Ken Eack, sparks in the lab only occur when there is a very powerful electric field, over a million volts per meter. Dr. Joseph Dwyer, of the Florida Institute of Technology, estimated the minimum amount field strength required for a spark through air at about three million volts per meter. But in the many decades people have been studying and measuring storms, rarely do they find a storm with even a few hundred thousand volts per meter. The question that has so plagued atmospheric physics is how a spark can form at less than a 10th of the expected threshold. There are a few popular theories on why lightning flashes can occur. The simplest is that there are small regions with very powerful electric fields inside clouds that decades of measurement simply haven t found. Another theory suggests ice crystals in clouds cause small, strong electric fields. Near the point of a crystal, the electric field gets stronger. But there s another fundamental question about lightning to which there is still no satisfactory answer. In a storm that is soon to produce lightning, positive and negative charges are not mingled. There is a small region of positive charge at the bottom of the cloud, a large region of negative charge above that and a large region of positive charge at the top. When water freezes, it picks up a charge. Larger hail particles gather negative charges, while smaller ice crystals gather a positive charge. Why these gather positive versus negative charges is not well understood. There are hypotheses and theories for these and many other questions, but more testing and new data is necessary to refine or affirm these theories. That is where The Langmuir lab comes in. Built in 1963, the Langmuir Laboratory for Atmospheric Research is a facility dedicated to studying lightning. It stands near South Baldy Peak alongside the Magdalena Ridge Observatory. These facilities have produced some very interesting results in their decades standing. For instance, they disproved one of Benjamin Franklin s theories and revolutionized the lightning rod. Franklin theorized lightning could be drawn to a pointed lightning rod by virtue of its being pointy, and given other strike points of similar height, lightning would strike a pointed object preferentially. Though humans have learned a lot about electricity in the years since, pointed lightning rods were still the accepted design. However, in the 80s and 90s, Langmuir physicists tested a blunt lightning rod and a pointed lightning rod side-by-side, as a controlled test hadn t really been done before, according to NMT Physicist Dr. Graydon Aulich. In the years they were up, 13 flashes hit the blunt rod while none hit the pointed rod. The results were published at the turn of the 21st century, and blunt lightning rods have grown more popular worldwide, said Aulich. Though Aulich is still testing lightning rods, it s a minor point of study. This year s main focus is triggered lightning. When a long wire is attached to a rocket launched into a storm, lightning will strike the rocket. Lightning tends to strike taller things, so sending a rocket with a grounded wire above everything nearby makes a good target for a flash. Lightning flashes are difficult to predict, which makes them even more difficult to study, so triggering a flash that will come to a specific point is very useful. The man in charge of the system as it stands is one Jake Trueblood. Trueblood is a graduate student at NMT, seeking his master s in physics instrumentation. This marks his third summer up in the lab, and this summer is particularly special. This is our first summer with current-measuring facilities, said Trueblood. Last summer, he redesigned the triggered lightning system to include a component that would measure the electrical current of a lightning strike. We didn t know how it would work, but when we tried it, (the system) worked awesomely, Trueblood said with all the swagger due a man who can call down lightning. He will graduate in either December or May, having planned to his thesis on his work at Langmuir. Specifically, he plans to look at the current data he s gathering and look at the differences between natural lightning and triggered lightning. Still, triggering a flash of lightning is not as simple as pressing a button or blowing into a tube. Trueblood describes a wire fed into a faraday cage as a good way to lose a hand during a lightning storm. If a conductor passes into a faraday cage, it would just guide charge into the cage, which defeats the purpose. Electricity will follow a path of least resistance. Metal provides less resistance than air or living things, so putting a person into a big enough grounded metal container can make them safe from lightning, even if it strikes the container directly. The electricity passes through the container, around the person and into the ground. That container is called a faraday cage. Trueblood tries to time his rocket launches as close as possible to when lightning would strike naturally. His launches are guided by information from the series of sensors in the kivas underground faraday cages at the launch site and around the lab. This brings his successful trigger rate to around 50 percent. It also makes his triggered strikes more similar to natural lightning. North of the kivas, past the Magdalena Ridge Observatory, is the balloon hangar, where Dr. Eack and NMT Physics Professor Dr. William P. Winn, Langmuir Lab chairman, do much of their work. The equipment near the hangar is used to measure various elements of a storm, such as the strength of the electric field. Inside the hangar, they prepare strings of lab equipment to be suspended from a weather balloon and sent in to the center of a storm. A typical string of equipment includes a parachute and heating element, which triggers at a certain altitude, cuts the line holding the string to the weather balloon and allows the string to land more slowly; an x-ray sensor part of Eack s work; a spot, which produces a signal so the string can be found more easily; and an esonde a device developed by Winn and fellow NMT Physics Professor Dr. Richard Sonnenfeld. An esonde is based on an older piece of storm studying equipment called a radiosonde. A radiosonde is a radio circuit attached to devices to measure temperature, pressure and humidity, which then transmits data back to the laboratory via radio waves. An esonde measures how electric fields in a storm are affected by lightning. The root word, sonde, is French and translates to sound. In this case, sounding is a nautical term ships sound in order to figure out the temperature of the water they are in. Eack s part of the weather balloon string is interesting, as well, and related to a relatively new topic of study. Lightning produces high-frequency electromagnetic radiation such as x-rays when it flashes, and such radiation is also emitted from powerful storms. Eack s current goal is to find out why and how this happens and whether or not this radiation has anything to do with how lightning is initiated. What Eack proposes is similar in effect to an avalanche. When an avalanche occurs, a large enough chunk of snow falls a few feet down a hill, causing more snow to fall, which in turn causes more and more to fall. Eventually, the amount of snow moving down the hill is huge. Eack proposes that a few electrons moving nearly the speed of light hit the air molecules around them, knocking electrons free, causing an avalanche of charge. This allows lightning to flash with a weaker electric field. Research has already determined that electrons only move a few meters in a lightning bolt, said Trueblood, and that it s the charge that moves a long distance. Eack s research may show how it begins. At the north end of the facility is the main building and dormitories, where researchers eat and sleep during extended stays at the facility. On the third floor, positioned well away from the kivas, is where post-doctorate Harald Edens runs the high-speed camera, among other things. This camera takes huge numbers of exposures per second in order to capture an entire flash of lightning. When Edens hits the button right after a flash, the camera stores the last second of footage. He works with Dr. Aulich, using the 20-antenna Lightning Mapping Array in the surrounding area to get accurate three-dimensional maps of lightning strikes. According to Trueblood, it takes data from at least six antennas to get an accurate map of a lightning bolt. There is another antenna array surrounding the mountain: the Langmuir Electric Field Array. This is Dr. Sonnenfeld s focus. This array consists of nine antennas and measures changes in electric fields caused by lightning, similar to an esonde. The array can operate 24 hours a day, allowing it to observes storms at all hours. Its measurements can be combined with those of the LMA to show how charges move in and around lightning. It can also reveal continuing currents, which are related to longer-lasting flashes of lightning. While some flashes occur in thousandths of seconds, others last much longer. Such flashes are responsible for most fires caused by lightning. Data from the LEFA and the LMA could help reveal why and how longer-lasting flashes occur. Though all of these projects operate independently, each measurement contributes to more than one project. This collaborative research is part of what makes the lab special. The biggest strength of Langmuir Lab is that it allows multiple Tech faculty and faculty from other universities to work together and measure lightning in several ways at the same time, learning together more than we could learn separately, said Sonnenfeld. The scientists bring their own interest and expertise to the research, but they share data, and the resulting collaboration makes the Langmuir group the strongest lightning research group in the world. All of these people and more work with the lab s resources high in the mountains in order to study a common but ill-understood phenomenon, dedicated to the expansion of human knowledge. | ||||||||
| Sat, 07/21/2012 unknown | Attention Soccer Moms & Little League Dads: Do You | 0.0 | U | USA | Attention Soccer Moms & Little League Dads: Do You Clinton Patch | Great article on lightning safety | N/A | Education,Good lightning safety info |
| Attention Soccer Moms & Little League Dads: Do You Know When It's Not Safe to Play? If you hear thunder, run for shelter. Lightning can strike from as far as 25 miles away. Every sports organization should have a plan in place to avert catastrophe. By Ron Goralski Email the author 5:00 am Email Print Comment Upload Photos and Videos If you are the parent of a youth athlete there s a very good chance that you ve watched a sporting event beneath the crash and flash of thunder and lightning. I know I have. And even with heightened warnings from the media, some youth sports organizations are still putting children at risk. Sometimes it s only a matter of a coach trying to grab a few extra minutes of practice time even as thunder can be heard in the distance. It seems harmless enough if you don t understand the dynamics of a lightning storm. Lightning safety became a huge blip on my radar screen many years ago while coaching a baseball game. Although lightning was flashing in the distance, a league official allowed play to continue. It wasn t until an ugly black cloud moved in closer and flashed its dangerous tongue directly above the complex that he finally yelled to clear the fields. Parents and players scrambled for cover. Many ran the distance of three baseball fields to their cars. Some of the players huddled in dugouts. Others stood around looking for their parents. The very next flash struck a dugout and split it in half. Four or five players and one coach fell to the ground. Every fiber of hair on my body darted to attention. Parents and children were screaming and running in all directions. Emergency vehicles showed up within minutes and began treating the victims. That last paragraph didn t actually happen. But it could have. The point is that each and every youth sports organization should have a plan of action. League officials, game officials, coaches and parents need to be aware of the procedures that will be taken in the event of severe weather. The first rule is very simple: If you hear thunder, run for shelter. Lightning can strike from as far as 25 miles away. The second important rule is that you should wait at least 30 minutes after the last sound of thunder or lightning strike before returning outside. Dugouts, pavilions, and trees are not viable options for cover. Part of any league s plan should include securing the use of a school building or field house if one is on-site. This becomes more important during practices when many kids are dropped off by parents. In the absence of a safe structure, create a plan that includes having enough cars available to handle the number of kids in attendance. Each car should have at least one adult in it. Learn the facts and myths associated with lightning. You ll be surprised by some of the information. Assign a parent who is not coaching as a storm monitor. Coaches and game officials are often so focused on the action that they may not notice a change in the weather. Last season I was at a high school football game where thunder and lightning were present and a dangerous storm was approaching the area. It wasn t until at least 20 minutes later when a torrential downpour began that the game was halted. What ensued was total chaos. A couple of months later I saw one of the officials who was working that game. I asked him why it had taken so long to make the decision to clear the field. He told me they (the officiating crew) were not aware of the worsening weather conditions. They didn t hear the thunder. They didn t see the flashes of lightning. So it s obvious that even at the upper levels, there is often a lack of safeguards in place to ensure the safety of those playing as well as in attendance. While I m not sure of the chain-of-command (or if it differs from school to school) for interrupting a high school game due to severe weather, the National Athletic Trainers Association recommends that the policy should identify a weather watcher whose job is to look for deteriorating conditions. The weather watcher must have the unchallengeable authority to clear a venue when conditions are unsafe. If this decision is in the hands of the game officials, is it also their responsibility to identify an approaching storm? In the case of a night game, with its bright lights, cameras flashing, bands playing, loudspeakers blaring, and bodies flying, giving the game official the duty of weather watcher seems a bit much. And as stated above, there is definitely a precedent for such concern. Everyone (parents, players, coaches, and league officials) needs to be aware of what their particular league has in place regarding severe weather. It s also a good idea to have it posted on the organization s website. With the proper planning and communication in place, everyone will be protected and accounted for in the event of severe weather. Related Topics: Lightning, Sports, and thunder Have you had a close call with lightning during a sports game? Tell us in the comments. | ||||||||
| Thu, 07/19/2012 09:00 AM Injured | boy | 14.0 | M | Rincon Puerto Rico | in the water | In Water,Outside | ||
| A 14-year-old boy in Puerto Rico has been struck by lightning at a popular tourist beach in the Caribbean island's western region. Police say Daniel Quinones Martell was struck this morning (NZT) while in the water at Sandy Beach in the town of Rincon. Police say Quinones lost consciousness and has been taken to a hospital. Officials at Good Samaritan Hospital say they can't release any details about the boy or his condition unless authorised to do so by his family. Police say they have no further information. The teen is from the town of Cabo Rojo in southwestern Puerto Rico. | ||||||||
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