Recent deaths heighten importance of Lightning Safety Awareness week

With more and more afternoon storms firing up, a local official wants to make sure people are aware about the dangers of lightning.

The week of June 22-28 is National Lightning Safety Awareness week, a time set aside to bring attention to lightning which has been called an underrated killer.

“This is always lightning safety week because we tend to have more summer showers which brings more lightning,” said Bill Laird, director of Laurens County Emergency Management Agency/E-911.

The fourth lightning death in 2025 in the U.S. happened last Friday. A Colorado man on his honeymoon was killed from being struck by lightning on a beach in Florida on June 20. The National Weather Service has reported that lightning killed a man died on April 11 in North Carolina from a fishing boat, another man died 11 days later from a fishing boat in Mississippi and the third man died on a golf course in Texas on June 8.  

This is the 25th year of a national effort to reduce lightning deaths and injuries. The National Weather Service/NOAA held the first national Lightning Safety Awareness Week in 2001. At that time, an average of 55 people were killed a year. That average has dropped to 20 lightning deaths a year. During that time span, more than 700 people have died in America from lightning.

In last 24 years 700 people have died from lightning in the U.S. Nineteen people have died from lightning between 2006 and 2024 in Georgia.

  In 2024, the National Lightning Safety Council said there were 12 lightning fatalities in the U.S. 

People were killed while walking, riding a bike, swimming, fishing, hanging out with friends, running, attending the rodeo, warning children of a storm, branding or feeding cattle and placing a tarp over a vehicle. 

These incidents happened in a field in a park, outside a home, open field, beach, parking lot, under a tree in a park, flea marker and river. The ages of those killed ranged from as young as 7 to as old as 73.

Of the 12 killed, five happened in Florida.

Of these deaths, 10 were men. These tragedies show the importance of seeking shelter early, a long time before the rain gets to people.

“Lighting can strike up to 10 miles from a storm,” Laird said. “If you can hear thunder, you are likely in striking distance and can be struck by lightning. 

“No place outside is safe when a thunderstorm is near. Wait until about a half a hour after the last time you hear thunder, then you should be safe.”

When it comes to outdoor safety, the National Lightning Safety Council recommends that no place outside is safe when thunderstorms are in the area. The council describes a safe place as a fully enclosed substantial building with wiring and plumbing or fully inside a hardtop metal vehicle.

When inside during a storm, the council recommends that everything plugged into an electrical outlet is dangerous to touch. Any plumbing, or water coming from the plumbing, is dangerous to touch. 

If someone is struck by lightning, victims do not retain a charge so they are safe to touch. People should call 911 and begin CPR or using a defibrillator if necessary.