I love them, we can get real bad ones here. I can sit and watch them all night. It will be something i will miss if I have move to a place that does not have any thunderstorms. I grew up with them.
I have had lightning strike close enough several times where the hair on my neck stood up right before it hit. But being scared, nah, it does no good to be scared of anything.
I live in the 'lightening capital' of the U.S. More people are killed or injured by lightening in Florida, than any other state, more than hurricanes and tornadoes. Now that I know that lightening can strike from more than 10 miles away, I have a healthy respect for what it can do.
I picked the wrong answer though. I love storms, and the light show, always have.
No. On the contrary, I LOVE lightning storms. I was born in a hurricane and my mother held me and walked me all night long after a tree crashed through the roof of our home. I have a healthy respect for it but also feel safe and protected as I watch. We had an incredible storm last night and I stayed up until around 3:00 a.m just to see. Magnificent!!!
Assuming you are on a hike away from buildings when a lightning storm catches up with you, use these lightning safety guidelines:
Do NOT seek shelter under a picnic shelter, lone tree, or other object to keep you dry. It will attract lightning. The rain won't kill you so its better to be wet and alive than dry and dead.
Come down from high places. Seek a valley or depression in the terrain. Be careful of entering a drywash that may channel a flashflood from the rainstorm.
Seek shelter in a low stand of trees. This will help keep you dry and not attract lightning.
If you are above treeline, seek shelter in the lowest area you can reach, preferably with large boulders around so you can get some protection from driving rain behind some smaller boulders.
Put on your raingear and remove your backpack.
If you have a metal frame pack, leave it 100 feet from where you are seeking shelter.
If you have a hiking stick or poles, leave them with your pack.
Your group should not huddle together. Instead, have each person find shelter about 100 feet apart. This minimizes the possibility of multiple casualties from a single strike.
If you are not able to get to any shelter, you need to become a small target and cross your fingers. Minimize your contact with the ground and minimize your heig...
Assuming you are on a hike away from buildings when a lightning storm catches up with you, use these lightning safety guidelines:
Do NOT seek shelter under a picnic shelter, lone tree, or other object to keep you dry. It will attract lightning. The rain won't kill you so its better to be wet and alive than dry and dead.
Come down from high places. Seek a valley or depression in the terrain. Be careful of entering a drywash that may channel a flashflood from the rainstorm.
Seek shelter in a low stand of trees. This will help keep you dry and not attract lightning.
If you are above treeline, seek shelter in the lowest area you can reach, preferably with large boulders around so you can get some protection from driving rain behind some smaller boulders.
Put on your raingear and remove your backpack.
If you have a metal frame pack, leave it 100 feet from where you are seeking shelter.
If you have a hiking stick or poles, leave them with your pack.
Your group should not huddle together. Instead, have each person find shelter about 100 feet apart. This minimizes the possibility of multiple casualties from a single strike.
If you are not able to get to any shelter, you need to become a small target and cross your fingers. Minimize your contact with the ground and minimize your height. Crouching down on the balls of your feet placed close together with your head tucked down is the recommended position. This position reduces your exposure and encourages any lightning strike to travel down your back and hopefully have less damage to vital organs. Lightning travels through the ground from the point of impact in random tendrils similar to tree roots. The smaller your footprint, the less chance there is of you being shocked from a nearby strike.
Cover your ears and close your eyes to protect from the intense noise and light of nearby strikes.
I picked the wrong answer though. I love storms, and the light show, always have.
Do NOT seek shelter under a picnic shelter, lone tree, or other object to keep you dry. It will attract lightning. The rain won't kill you so its better to be wet and alive than dry and dead.
Come down from high places. Seek a valley or depression in the terrain. Be careful of entering a drywash that may channel a flashflood from the rainstorm.
Seek shelter in a low stand of trees. This will help keep you dry and not attract lightning.
If you are above treeline, seek shelter in the lowest area you can reach, preferably with large boulders around so you can get some protection from driving rain behind some smaller boulders.
Put on your raingear and remove your backpack.
If you have a metal frame pack, leave it 100 feet from where you are seeking shelter.
If you have a hiking stick or poles, leave them with your pack.
Your group should not huddle together. Instead, have each person find shelter about 100 feet apart. This minimizes the possibility of multiple casualties from a single strike.
If you are not able to get to any shelter, you need to become a small target and cross your fingers. Minimize your contact with the ground and minimize your heig...
Do NOT seek shelter under a picnic shelter, lone tree, or other object to keep you dry. It will attract lightning. The rain won't kill you so its better to be wet and alive than dry and dead.
Come down from high places. Seek a valley or depression in the terrain. Be careful of entering a drywash that may channel a flashflood from the rainstorm.
Seek shelter in a low stand of trees. This will help keep you dry and not attract lightning.
If you are above treeline, seek shelter in the lowest area you can reach, preferably with large boulders around so you can get some protection from driving rain behind some smaller boulders.
Put on your raingear and remove your backpack.
If you have a metal frame pack, leave it 100 feet from where you are seeking shelter.
If you have a hiking stick or poles, leave them with your pack.
Your group should not huddle together. Instead, have each person find shelter about 100 feet apart. This minimizes the possibility of multiple casualties from a single strike.
If you are not able to get to any shelter, you need to become a small target and cross your fingers. Minimize your contact with the ground and minimize your height. Crouching down on the balls of your feet placed close together with your head tucked down is the recommended position. This position reduces your exposure and encourages any lightning strike to travel down your back and hopefully have less damage to vital organs. Lightning travels through the ground from the point of impact in random tendrils similar to tree roots. The smaller your footprint, the less chance there is of you being shocked from a nearby strike.
Cover your ears and close your eyes to protect from the intense noise and light of nearby strikes.