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Gimme Shelter
Thu Jun 23, 2005
Listen in RealAudio 
Hi, I'm Bryan Yeaton, and this is The Weather Notebook. Today, lightning researcher Ron Holle straightens out some common lightning misbeliefs.
BRYAN: By my understanding, lightning can strike 6-10 miles out in front of the storm - is that true?
RON: Yeah, we find 80% of the flashes are within 6 miles and that means 20% of the cloud flashes are more than 6 miles away from the preceding flash in the same storm. So 20% of them are coming from or following up on a flash that was more than 6 miles away.
Holle says when the lightning is less than six miles away-or about 30 seconds between the flash and bang-you should seek safety in a substantial building, not a small shelter.
RON: Wiring and plumbing in houses will take the charge of the current when the lightning hits the building, and takes it safely into the ground. Now the problem is that you don't want to be touching any of the paths where the lightning is going: wires and water are great conductors of electricity.
BRYAN: How many people do you know, on average, are killed because they're talking on the telephone every year?
RON: I think we're running about 1-2 people killed and quite a few injured every year on telephones. They have that wire connecting to the wall. That wire goes into the wall. It is connected to the telephone or power pole outside and those are the most common things to be hit. So you're just taking the path and just putting it right up to your head, which is the worst place, you can put it.
Ron Holle worked for the National Severe Storms Lab, before becoming a private consultant. Our program is funded by The National Science Foundation, and Subaru of America.
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