It was a huge explosion !

It was a huge explosion, everything was flashing and the noise was incredible. My mother’s brand new microwave fried, as did their fax machine and satellite dish. I’m very fortunate that it didn’t hit my house. Jon-Henry, my son, was playing on the computer and I was watching TV. I know you’re all thinking, “What’s wrong with this woman? Doesn’t she know to shut off everything during a storm?” Yes, I do. The only problem is that I was living under the myth that if you count the seconds between the lightning and the thunder, the storm is a mile away per second. My last count, before the big strike, was three, I figured I had a few more minutes to act.

With ears ringing and our TV set with the colors all screwed up, Jon and I jumped into action unplugging everything and we snuggled down in the middle of the house to wait out the storm. It took a couple of hours after the storm passed for our TV to return to its normal colors and for our ears to stop ringing.

It disturbed me how fast the storm had come over and how little I knew about lightning, so I cranked up the computer and found the Kid’s Lightning Information and Safety web page at www.azstarnet.com/anubis/zaphome.htm and learned quite a few new things. Another great web site is www.lighningsafety.com. You can link to this page and many more through the Kids’ Lightning Information and Safety page.

High danger zone !

I learned that every 5 seconds between the lightning and thunder equals one mile, and that you are in the “high danger zone” if you are within 6 miles of the storm. Also, lightning can strike 10 miles away from a storm and scientist now believe that it can strike 15 or more miles away from a cloud. I found this incredible. If you count 30 seconds from the flash to the boom, you are in the “high danger zone”. Lightning also can strike before and after the rain falls.

Lightning safety at home tips !

Some of the lightning safety at home tips are not to be in water during a storm. Most of us know this, but that means, no doing dishes, no taking a shower. Stay away from windows, water faucets, pipes and electrical outlets. Do not answer the phone during a lightning storm, as it wouldn’t be too fun to have an electrical current travel from your ear to your brain. Stay away from doors and windows. Turn off, unplug, and stay away from appliances, computers, power tools and TV sets.

I had heard that if you are caught in a lightning storm to huddle on the ground and stick your rear end up in the air. Besides being a very unattractive position, this is the wrong position. Lying flat on your stomach is another “wrong” position. If lightning hits someplace near you it can travel through the ground and zap you. The lightning safety experts have come up with the following position that could save your life.

Put your heels together !

A. Crouch down. Put feet together (heels touching). With your heels together, if the lightning hits the ground, it goes through the closet foot, up to your heel and then transfers to the other foot and goes back to the ground again. If you don’t put your feet together, lightning could go through your heart and kill you.

B. Place hands over ears to minimize hearing damage from thunder.

C. Avoid proximity (minimum of 15 ft.) to other people.

Okay, I know, this position is hard to do and for some people, nearly impossible. Might not be a bad idea though to teach this to your children, grandchildren. At the speed thunderstorms hit this area, children may very well find themselves in a very dangerous situation. Your child may be with friends or even an adult who does not take lightning serious, so going over a few simple safety tips would be advisable.

The National Lightning Safety Institute also recommends that you suspend activities for 30 minutes after the last observed lightning or thunder. (If you have kids at home that’s a l o n g time. You may want to set aside a few toys/activities only to be used during a lightning storm.) So next time your skin and hair feel prickly, get yourself inside, unplug everything, and get ready to enjoy the light show.

Luara Hahn is the representative of the ARCR branch in Guanacaste.

© El Residente ARCR Administración S.A. San José, Costa Rica N.B. Like all information on the internet, this article may currently be incorrect or out of date.