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Lightning fact sheet
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Lightning
Safety Awareness Week is June 24-30
[June 25, 2007]
The National Weather Service in
Lincoln has partnered with the Illinois Emergency Management Agency,
the Illinois Department of Natural Resources, the Illinois High
School Association and the Illinois Elementary School Association to
educate the public about the dangers of lightning. Lightning safety
posters and information cards have been made available to every
state park, high school and junior high school in the state.
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Each year, 61
people are killed by lightning in the United States on average.
This is more than those killed by tornadoes and second only to
flash flooding deaths.
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It is estimated
that more than 1,000 people are injured by lightning strikes in
the United States each year.
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There has already
been one person killed and several injured by lightning in
Illinois this year. Nearly 100 people have been killed by
lightning in Illinois since 1960.
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There are an
estimated 25 million cloud-to-ground lightning flashes each year
in the United States, nearly 650,000 of which occur in Illinois
alone.
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About 67 percent
of lightning fatalities and injuries occur outdoors at
recreation events -- baseball games, soccer games, lakes and on
golf courses -- and under or near trees.
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Lightning results
in about $5 billion of economic impact in the U.S. each year and
is one of the leading causes of forest fires.
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Lightning safety
is a two-step process:
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If you are close
enough to hear thunder or see bolt of lightning, you are close
enough to be struck by lightning.
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Take shelter in a
sturdy building with the windows and doors shut.
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Seek shelter in an
enclosed, hard-topped vehicle with the windows closed.
Do not go outdoors
for at least 30 minutes after the last rumble of thunder.
More lightning information on the Web:
[Text from file received from
the
National Weather Service,
Lincoln office]
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