Weather Features

Planning, Quick Action Can Avert Lightning Tragedy

BOSTON (WBZ) ― Monday marks the beginning of National Lightning Safety Week.

So far this year, nine people have been killed by lightning across the country, two of them right here in New England.

It's not hard to play it safe in a storm. It just takes a little planning to prevent a lightning tragedy. According to researchers, most victims are only steps away from safety when they are struck.

Now new lightning safety guidelines and new technology can help you make the right moves during storms this summer.

Lightning can set homes on fire, threaten aircraft and alter lives.

"I couldn't feel my legs. All I kept yelling out was, 'I can't feel my legs. I can't feel my legs,'" Scott O'Day recalled.

O'Day and his wife, Tucker, were struck by lightning last Friday while walking down a beach in Scituate.

"It was just this incredibly loud, fast boom," Tucker O'Day said. 

"I'm just really grateful to be alive," her husband added.

Many are not so fortunate.

"During the months of June, July and August, we average about a person every other day that's being struck and killed in the United States," National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration lightning expert John Jensenius told us.

"The greatest concern is really the amount of voltage that goes through the body. It can still do an awful lot of damage to the nervous system."

The odds of being struck in a given year are one in 500,000. But over a lifetime, they're one in 5,000. And to either be a victim or know one, they become one in 600.

Mike Utley knows the numbers well.

"The guys in front of me heard this loud bang," Utley recalled. "I was stumbling to the ground, smoke -- it was actually steam but it looked like smoke coming from my body."

Utley was struck on a Cape Cod golf course several years ago. As part of his lengthy recovery, he's made it his mission to save lives.

Utley's Web site, www.struckbylightning.org, offers a lightning alert service. Based on your location, alerts are sent via e-mail or cell phone when you're within striking distance.

"If you hear thunder, immediately stop what you are doing and get inside." Jensenius advised.

Based on the latest safety guidelines, there is no safe outdoor location. A substantial building or a hard-top vehicle are your best options. Quick action can save a life.

Jensenius offered a common lament: "If they'd just started five minutes sooner, they'd be alive today."

Here is one storm mantra to remember this summer: When thunder roars, go indoors. Ninety-eight percent of lightning fatalities happen outside.

Nine out of 10 people struck by lightning do survive, but suffer significant medical effects.

For a full outline of lightning safety tips or to sign up for lightning alerts, visit us online at www.wbztv.com/weatherblog.

(© MMVIII, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)