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Weather : Thunderstorms

As a youngster playing in the garden with no sign of thunderstorms about when a bolt of lightning hit a neighbour's chimney and completely demolished it. Since then I've always felt slightly uneasy when thunderstorms are nearby.

Over recent years I've noticed that we seem to have fewer thunderstorms and it appears to be true according to this newspaper article dated June 2021.
 
Lightning is strange stuff. There have been cases where it has smashed through brick walls from an external lightning conductor to an internal water tank for instance. People debate the best course of action. One man had severe chest burns after lightning took a path through the medallion hanging around his neck - did that 'attract' the lightning or did it save him by diverting current from his body? What is 'hard fact' is so-called 'step voltage', lightning hitting the ground can set up a voltage gradient along the surface. Humans are usually OK but cows with front and rear legs far apart can be electrocuted even though strictly no lightning hit them. Similarly farm fencing when hit can 'flashover' to adjacent animals, so good practice is to break long runs of wires. Lastly lightning can strike twice, even 50 times. Certain electricity pylons seem to be very attractive. Keep indoors, keep away from trees and fences.
 
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Lightning is strange stuff. There have been cases where it has smashed through brick walls from an external lightning conductor to an internal water tank for instance. People debate the best course of action. One man had severe chest burns after lightning took a path through the medallion hanging around his neck - did that 'attract' the lightning or did it save him by diverting current from his bod?. What is 'hard fact' is so-called 'step voltage', lightning hitting the ground can set up a voltage gradient along the surface. Humans are usually OK but cows with front and rear legs far apart can be electrocuted even though strictly no lightning hit them. Similarly farm fencing when hit can 'flashover' to adjacent animals, so good practice is to break long runs of wires. Lastly lightning can strike twice, even 50 times. Certain electricity pylons seem to be very attractive. Keep indoors, keep away from trees and fences.
Excellent comments Spargone!
 
Many years ago I was visiting someone in Birkenhead. there was a thunderstorm on. She was standing in the bay window and whilst talking pointed towards something she was talking about. At that moment there was a flash of lightening and we saw it hit the end of her finger, travel up her arm and across her back and travel to the mirror on the wall and disappear. Miraculously she suffered no harm.
On another occasion I was travelling in the car on a main road about 10pm when there was a storm on. Suddenly there was a flash of lightening, the street lights went out, the lightening hit the white line in the centre of the road and travelled up it towards me and suddenly disappeared just before it came to my car which I had brought to a stop.
Having said all that I still love watching the lightening
 
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