I was reading an article that the odds of winning the lottery are 1 in 300,000,000 while the odds of getting struck by lightning are 1 in 3,000. I checked a couple more sights and saw 1 in 7,000 and 1 in 10,000. I have never been struck, or known anyone who has been struck unless you count my buddy John. He was wadefishing in Port O'Connor years ago and lightning struck a duck blind in the same flat he was fishing. He said he got shocked, but wasn't injured. Does that count? Anyone got lightning strike stories?

My grandfather was a lineman 47 years and was struck twice. Both times the strike was a good way away from him and he was lucky to just get some residual.

Got struck once at 51,000 feet! Actually, the aircraft I was flying got struck. Sort of concerned for a while. Pilot buddy in back seat was a little excited.

Minimal damage to airplane.

Had about four in-flight strikes, all either during take-off or landing. Makes for a long day sometimes......

Stationed at Fort Polk, we were conducting some training at our Battery CP while in garrison. Sudden down pour come out of nowhere and I was told to take my HMMWV back to the motor pool. We put it on line in the pouring rain, and as I was opening the passenger door, I realized I was being shocked and then less than a second later lighting strikes a tree 100-150 yards away. I hit the deck like we just got mortared. Scared the hell out of me.

Once worked on a job where an oak tree got hit by a house. It exploded the tree so hard it sent small oak shrapnel over a hundred feet away completely through the shingles and 3/4 inch pine decking.

IIIHorn said:

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Getting struck once is bad enough.

Getting struck twice is revolting.

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the king

Two men were fishing near Double Bayou South of Anahuac in the bay and were struck. Killed both and they were found by a local fisherman who was close by. About 15 years ago.

This thread is full of "My neighbor's childhood best friend's neighbor got struck by lightning" and "I saw a lightning bolt once, does that count?"

One of my brothers best friends trained cutting horses. Lightning got him and a horse he was riding in San Saba several years ago.

I don't like lightening after working at Philmont. I don't remember which year, but I ended having to help with a litter carry on Baldy. A kid got popped through the ground near the ridge....I want to say '97. To this day, if I see lightening, I start counting.

In 2000, the most scared I have ever been in the woods was due to lightening on Mt. Phillips after the bear attack. I interviewed the crews at Clear Creek before heading the mountain. It was cloudy at the summit, but nothing going on. Right as me and the Ranger hit the summit, we heard thunder in the distance. We say some lightening on a 14 count, which at the time was considered pretty good. Well, about that time we both noticed the hair on our arms standing on end....sh-- sh-- sh--. We do the scramble drill trying to seperate and assume the lightening position. About 5-6 seconds later a tree pretty well blew up about 75 yards away. 5 minutes later is was sunny. Good times

https://www.abqjournal.com/news/state/apzap07-30-07.htm

They sure did walk in the house pretty calmly after that.

yea they did.


Last week I was on the golf course and we got chased off by rain after hole 7. We were hiding in this little covered bathroom spot near the 8th tee for about 20 minutes as a good rain came thru. At the very end, when it was just about to stop raining, one bolt of lightning relatively close followed by a loud thunder clap. It was the only lightning or thunder of the entire storm. It was really weird.

Was out at riverside campus in a deluge. Standing in 4" of water over the runway. Lightning hit a fencepost a good 300 yards away and it jolted my ass enough to jump 3' in the air.

Other time in phoenix, walking on an asphalt track. Morning, storm clouds around. All of a sudden i felt very tingly amd the lady in front of me's hair stood straight up. I hit the freaking deck but thankfully nothing happened.

Thats all i got.

was being chased back to the house by a summer storm as a teenager, just pulled the pickup through the gate coming out of the back pasture and felt a jolt as i was closing the gate. Somewhere down the fence line must have got hit.

brother in law was on a tank battery next to a county road trying to get an oil sample when the tank battery across the road got hit, about 100 yards away.

in the 50s or 60s, grandad lost 50 head of mama cows in the Oklahoma panhandle one night when lightning hit the only tree in that pasture and the cows were bunched up around it.

knew a guy that had a John deere combine that got hit, but didn't burn. they replaced every computer in it but the electronics never acted right in it afterward.

So do people explode like The wooden objects in the videos if they are hit directly??

When I was probably 7 or 8, had a baseball practice or scrimmage that was cancelled and as my mom was stopped at the exit to the park, either the car was struck or lightening hit right in front of the car. We were both fine, but I could see nothing but orange when it happened.

I think that's the closest I've been.

Had a fishing pole start vibrating while jetty fishing, didn't take long to get back to the bank. Had a coworkers boyfriend get hit while trying to pull start the motor on an aluminum jonboat out in the bay, left a hole in the bottom where his foot was. Instantaneous.