Lightning safety awareness week -- understanding one of nature's most underrated killers

Based on statistics for the 30-year period ending in 2006, lightning is the second greatest storm–related killer in the United States, second only to flooding. To reduce the number of lightning deaths and injuries in this country, NOAA and the National Weather Service (NWS) have been working to find ways to draw attention to this underrated killer. In 2001, NOAA and the NWS teamed up with non-governmental organizations and individuals to find ways to draw attention to the dangers associated with lightning. Since then, NOAA's “Lightning Safety Awareness Team” has worked to provide information on lightning and lightning safety to the media and the public. To highlight the dangers of lightning, NOAA has declared the last full week in June as Lightning Safety Awareness Week and has worked with various organizations and agencies involved with outdoor activities to help deliver safety messages.

In this presentation, we will talk about the science of the lightning with an emphasis on providing information that is of interest to the general public. We will explain in non-technical detail what causes lightning and what happens during the lightning discharge. We will also show some of the specific resources NOAA, the NWS, and NOAA's Lightning Safety Awareness Team have made available to the media to help educate the public on the dangers of lightning. In addition, we will provide information on recent lightning fatalities in the United States.