Myth: If outside in a thunderstorm, you should seek shelter under a tree to stay dry. Fact: Being underneath a tree is the second leading cause of lightning casualties. Better to get wet than fried!
Indoor Lightning Safety: What to do While Taking Shelter From a Thunderstorm. Lightning is a dangerous yet often-overlooked weather phenomenon. Statistically, chances that someone is struck and killed by lightning is 1 in 1.9 million. For homes, the number is a surprising 1 in 200.
Stay off corded phones, computers and other electrical equipment that put you in direct contact with electricity. Avoid plumbing, including sinks, baths and faucets. Stay away from windows and doors, and stay off porches. Do not lie on concrete floors, and do not lean against concrete walls.
Lightning can jump through windows, so keep your distance from them during storms! The second way lightning can enter a building is through pipes or wires. If the lightning strikes utility infrastructure, it can travel through those pipes or wires and enter your home that way.
While no place is 100% safe from lightning, some places are much safer than others. The safest location during a thunderstorm is inside a large enclosed structure with plumbing and electrical wiring. These include shopping centers, schools, office buildings, and private residences.
A jolting, excruciating pain. “My whole body was just stopped—I couldn't move any more,” Justin recalls. “The pain was … I can't explain the pain except to say if you've ever put your finger in a light socket as a kid, multiply that feeling by a gazillion throughout your entire body.
The risk of lightning travelling through plumbing might be less with plastic pipes than with metal pipes. However, it is best to avoid any contact with plumbing and running water during a lightning storm to reduce your risk of being struck.
Stay away from water
Showering, bathing or washing dishes can all pose a risk if lightning is occurring near your home. “When lightning happens, it generally travels on the path of least resistance, which is often going to take it into metal which can go through the pipes,” he says.
A toilet is probably as safe a place as any in a lightning storm, if you're not touching metal. Porcelain is a great insulator. In a lightning storm, don't stand in the shower clutching onto the shower head. Don't sit in a bathtub while in contact with the metal drain cap or faucet.
Lightning rods (and the accompanying protection system) are designed to protect a house or building from a direct lightning strike and, in particular, a lightning-initiated fire.
Lightning doesn't strike the ocean as much as land, but when it does,it spreads out over the water, which acts as a conductor. It can hit boats that are nearby, and electrocute fish that are near the surface. If you're at the beach and hear thunder or see lightning, get out of the water.
Unplug appliances. Avoid using the telephone or any electrical appliances. If lightning strikes, telephone lines and metal pipes can conduct electricity. Leaving electric lights on, however, does not increase the chances of your home being struck by lightning.
Avoid plumbing: Metal plumbing and the water inside are both very good conductors of electricity. Therefore, do not wash your hands or dishes, take a shower or bath, do laundry, etc. during a thunderstorm.
Because lightning can strike at a distance of up to 10 miles away, if you can hear thunder, you should take precautions. When it comes to doing the dishes or cooking during a thunderstorm, your best bet is to wait until the storm has passed.
Speak up! No place outside is safe when a thunderstorm is in the area. Get inside as soon as you hear thunder. Run to a substantial building or hard-topped metal vehicle as fast as you can.
In conclusion, it's not safe to vacuum during a thunderstorm. Vacuum cleaners, like all electrical appliances, can conduct electricity, which can be dangerous during a storm. To stay safe, unplug your appliances and avoid using water or plumbing fixtures.
Whether inside or outside, anyone in contact with anything connected to metal wires, plumbing, or metal surfaces that extend outside is at risk. This includes anything that plugs into an electrical outlet, water faucets and showers, corded phones, and windows and doors.
Thunder is created when lightning passes through the air. The lightning discharge heats the air rapidly and causes it to expand. The temperature of the air in the lightning channel may reach as high as 50,000 degrees Fahrenheit, 5 times hotter than the surface of the sun.
It is safe to touch people who have been struck by lightning; they DO NOT carry an electrical charge.
Some burns can look like Lichtenberg figures, or lines. Lichtenberg lines are long, intricate, wavy burns that can appear on someone temporarily after receiving a massive electric shock. "They don't really stick around. They're these fernlike, superficial burns of the skin," said Claypool.
Just before lightning actually strikes, static energy is going to fill the air. If you look at your arms, you may see the hair on your arms standing on end. You may also feel a physical tingling sensation throughout your body, especially in your extremities.