Seeking Answers About Lightning

Yep, I am afraid of lightning! I have had three close calls in my lifetime, including one with James Spann as we stepped out the back door of Channel 6 after midnight the night Hurricane Opal came ashore. Huge bolt of lightning struck the TV station sign that overlooks the city. We were only a few feet away.

Yep, I know most of the answers about lightning in general. Going indoors at the sound of thunder is a given with me.

But I have received mixed signals on these questions and I really do need an expert’s opinion. These questions fall out of the field of meteorology.

In my weather office at home, we have two desks with three computers, a printer and a TV set. My desk is large and sits only inches from a very large window to the outside that covers almost half the wall. I am sitting only five feet from the window. During thunderstorms, especially severe thunderstorms, I am as busy as a rabbit trying to cross US 280 at 5 pm frequently updating the weather blog and doing radio broadcasts. I do the radio broadcasts by phone patch and when there is a Tornado Warning in our coverage area, we go wall-to-wall in coverage.

All of our utilities are underground, including electric, phone, cable TV. In fact they are already underground before they get to our sub-division. So here are my questions and I am sure people in the telephone, power company, cable field will know:

1. Is it possible for lightning to run in on the phone and cook my eardrums even though the lines are underground?

2. Is it possible for a huge bolt of lightning to come through the big window and go for the phone receiver in my hand because of the telephone signal? That would probably behead me!

3. During severe lightning, if I took my cell phone to the center of the house away from windows and broadcast from there, would I be safe.

4. One gentleman told me that lightning could strike the ground or a tree and enter the underground phone line or power line and travel to my house even from a mile or so away?. That possible? Seems that would be very rare.

I know that we are not supposed to take showers in an electrical storm or even wash our hands. And I know we are supposed to stay away from windows but I almost have to take that risk.

Any answers appreciated.

Category: Pre-November 2010 Posts