When lightning strikes….

[Hades]

Not gunna lie, I thought standing under a tree would be a good idea. Let something taller take the lightning strike.

It does. In fact the tree attracts the lightning because it's tall and is more conductive than air. But unfortunately a human is even more conductive than a tree so the lightning will jump from the tree to you.

 

[Junglist]

Love a good thunderstorm. Some of my favourite memories are being sat in our family home in Jamaica and watching the tropical storms out at sea. Was always relaxing - Probably wouldn't be as relaxing if it was directly overhead though!

A, really small, part of me envies lightning strike survivors as they end up with those really gnarly scars. That's an interesting anecdote for life!

 

[Terminal_Boy]

It does. In fact the tree attracts the lightning because it's tall and is more conductive than air. But unfortunately a human is even more conductive than a tree so the lightning will jump from the tree to you.

That’s what I was always told. Better to lay down in an open area and get soaked than stay dry and get zapped.

 

[Deleted User 298457]

Love a good thunderstorm. Some of my favourite memories are being sat in our family home in Jamaica and watching the tropical storms out at sea. Was always relaxing - Probably wouldn't be as relaxing if it was directly overhead though!

A, really small, part of me envies lightning strike survivors as they end up with those really gnarly scars. That's an interesting anecdote for life!

I went to Florida in 2000 and my Dad was absolutely buzzing about the thunderstorms. It was frustrating as hell but in hindsight very sweet. He sat at the door of our dodgy Howard Johnson motel with a coin operated television filming it on his new Sharp camcorder he bought on HP. He finally caught one good blast. Still have the footage of him saying "it's gonna go RIGHT there.... RIGHT there...."

 

[Junglist]

I went to Florida in 2000 and my Dad was absolutely buzzing about the thunderstorms. It was frustrating as hell but in hindsight very sweet. He sat at the door of our dodgy Howard Johnson motel with a coin operated television filming it on his new Sharp camcorder he bought on HP. He finally caught one good blast. Still have the footage of him saying "it's gonna go RIGHT there.... RIGHT there...."

Haha I don't know why but the word 'camcorder' just brought back tonnes of good, and equally tonnes of terrible, good holiday memories from my childhood.

How and why parents enjoyed carrying those massive cameras around along with kids will always baffle me

 

[Deleted User 298457]

Haha I don't know why but the word 'camcorder' just brought back tonnes of good, and equally tonnes of terrible, good holiday memories from my childhood.

How and why parents enjoyed carrying those massive cameras around along with kids will always baffle me

Yeah my dad taped over most of the re-records with episodes of Sharpe... he never forgave himself but at the time it felt inconsequential. Would have loved to have seen them now though!

 

[bazzabear]

I think what happened is that it was raining, they hid under a tree - which is quite normal - took a selfie and then an unexpected lightning bolt struck.

Not - oh there's a thunderstorm, let's hide under a tree and take a selfie while there's lightning flashing around everywhere.

I initially assumed the same must have happened. I wouldn't have written the comment I did without this bit of the story:

"When she returned from the loo, she saw her brother and sister under some trees during a thunderstorm. They decided to take some pictures before setting off again."

To be clear - I'm not intending to be judgmental of them for this. If you haven't heard that advice, then of course you don't know it - that's no fault of the person. You could maybe logically work out that it's a bad idea, but you probably won't be thinking it through that carefully when you're getting drenched, you'll just be wanting some shelter!

 

[Hagar]

I was was mountain walking in the Lake district and I was caught in a large electrical storm. Luckily we had researched this as a group due to the weather forecast. Find a hollow, throw your stick and other metal objects down and huddle as low as possible.
We got soaking wet but everyone was fine. Back at the campsite we heard that someone had been carried off the fell with burns due to lightning. It does happen quite often.

 

[Lysander]

@bazzabear well in that case, they're daft.

 

[Freakbro]

The closest I had was a massive thunderstorm passing over the house and I was stood in the porch watching, with loads of lightning going off all around. Then a strike hit right around me, whether it was the trees in front of the house or something else close I've no idea, but the world just went white, bright white. Your eyes close instinctively, but it didn't matter, I could see straight through my eyelids and the world looked like an overexposed negative! and whether it was to do with a concussive wave or just a body reaction but it blew me off my feet and I ended up in a dazed crumpled heap at the bottom of my stairs. The thunderclap that accompanied it was biblical!

Gf at the time was in the lounge crying hysterically and it was all quite surreal coming around from the daze, with your eyes trying to readjust and car/house alarms going off, pretty epic experience really

 

[Hades]

The closest I had was a massive thunderstorm passing over the house and I was stood in the porch watching, with loads of lightning going off all around. Then a strike hit right around me, whether it was the trees in front of the house or something else close I've no idea, but the world just went white, bright white. Your eyes close instinctively, but it didn't matter, I could see straight through my eyelids and the world looked like an overexposed negative! and whether it was to do with a concussive wave or just a body reaction but it blew me off my feet and I ended up in a dazed crumpled heap at the bottom of my stairs. The thunderclap that accompanied it was biblical!

Gf at the time was in the lounge crying hysterically and it was all quite surreal coming around from the daze, with your eyes trying to readjust and car/house alarms going off, pretty epic experience really

The alien invasion has started!

 

[Blackjack Davy]

There was thunderstorms here only a few days ago and rain, oh the rain...

Flooding in one road it'll be a mess when I get there I'm dreading it. The idiots on the site tried to use a regular vac last time to suck up all the water and completely knackered it it wasn't a wet 'n' dry vac still got to try and explain that one to the boss, its not like there isn't a mop and bucket in the corner, several infact

under a tree is horrible bad

tried to tell people on a campsite once setting up under trees is bad

one for insects and the midgie trees shelter them too
two - tree sap and acid run off onto your tent sheets
and three - lightning - ******* death

Not to mention tree boughs breaking off and flattening you in your sleep

The closest I had was a massive thunderstorm passing over the house and I was stood in the porch watching, with loads of lightning going off all around. Then a strike hit right around me, whether it was the trees in front of the house or something else close I've no idea, but the world just went white, bright white. Your eyes close instinctively, but it didn't matter, I could see straight through my eyelids and the world looked like an overexposed negative! and whether it was to do with a concussive wave or just a body reaction but it blew me off my feet and I ended up in a dazed crumpled heap at the bottom of my stairs. The thunderclap that accompanied it was biblical!

Gf at the time was in the lounge crying hysterically and it was all quite surreal coming around from the daze, with your eyes trying to readjust and car/house alarms going off, pretty epic experience really

I remember that happening once while on holiday in this cottage on a hill in the lake district or something lots of lightning and suddenly this white flash that completely blinded everything else, power went out for a few seconds as well. Never did discover where it hit but it was close by.

 

[BUDFORCE]

I've been in a car hit by lightening.

I was about 14 camping in Cornwall really lively thunderstorm, so we went in the car mainly to get out of the rain.

Car felt like it jumped several inches off the ground and really loud bang, bit was absolutely fine after as were we.

The other reason not to stand by a tree is the lightening can flow faster down the middle or under the bark where there is more water as more conducive, and it basically blows the trunk of the tree to bits like wood shrapnel.

 

[.Lethal]

There's a bit in-between hive mind and totally autonomy called general schooling

Do you think because you went to school that everybody else should have picked up the same things you did? If I tested GD for common knowledge I wouldn’t have an expectation that everybody would have the correct answers.

 

[Angilion]

Not gunna lie, I thought standing under a tree would be a good idea. Let something taller take the lightning strike.

You may have saved my life OCUK, take that Darwin!

You're the first person I've ever encountered in any way who didn't know that standing under a tree in a lightning storm was a bad idea. I can see how "Let something taller take the lightning strike" would make sense to someone who had never been told about the tree thing and who thought of lightning as a projectile rather than as electricity, but I didn't think there was anyone that applied to.

A vehicle is usually the best protection if one is available (unless you open the door, put your feet on the ground and your hand on the roof). Outdoors, your best bet is to squat on the ground in an open area. The key thing to remember is that electricity always takes the path of least electrical resistance so your goal is to make sure your body isn't part of that path. Hence the vehicle - in that case, the path of least electrical resistance between ground and sky will be around the outside of the vehicle. The biggest risk to people inside will be the chance of the noise and light causing the driver to crash, assuming the car is moving.

 

[Tuppy_Glossop]

If you are under a tree, stand with your feet equidistant from it. If one foot is closer to the trunk the dissipating electricity will use your body as a less resistent path than the ground. If your feet are both on a circle that is concentric to the tree, it will happen to a much lower degree.

 

[Deleted User 298457]

Do you think because you went to school that everybody else should have picked up the same things you did? If I tested GD for common knowledge I wouldn’t have an expectation that everybody would have the correct answers.

The general curriculum is set by the government. It's the reason why we all take the same exams lol.

 

[explicit4u]

Add me to the list of people who assumed standing under a tree was the correct move here.

Asked a few friends about this, including my mum, and most seem to think it's the sensible move too.

My thinking would be similar to new boy, stand next to a taller thing so it takes the strike instead of you. If the advice is to squat and get low then I can see how the tree thing might come about.

 

[Kenai]

I'd have thought the 'standing under a tall thing like a tree' is the most common lightning related 'misunderstanding' going, i'm probably more surprised that people think it's something that literally everyone knows.

 

[keyser]

I read about a bloke that got hit by lightning and lived, he felt the static build up a moment before he was hit.. so if you feel static in a thunderstorm use your cat/gamer like reflexes to dive to the ground and erm that's all I got

I knew about car = safe, tree = not safe. I used to work at a local school and for some reason decided to walk the 10 mins home during the height of a thunder and lightning storm with my umbrella out. I shouted at some kids that were using a tree for cover, they ran off so I totally saved their lives etc

Watching lightning from a safe distance is nice but less so if it strikes within 100 metres which has happened to me before (hit the electric train line at the end of my garden at the time [crack kaboom!])

If I ever do get hit by lightning I hope a) I get an awesome Lichtenberg scar b) live