Lighting strike hits 4 near White House

[Anonymous]

https://www.wusa9.com/article/news/local/dc/four-people-critical-condition-lighting-strike-dc/65-4132d822-9842-4ce0-8093-3a902ee9ac86

And now it's thundering pretty heavily in my little corner of Bethesda.

[Anonymous]

Oh no! I hope they are all okay. The storms tonight were something else!

[Anonymous]

Update: Two of the four have died. They were in their 70s and from Wisconsin.

I'm so sorry for their families.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2022/08/05/two-dead-white-house-lightning/

[Anonymous]

This is so sad. DH and I were driving home last night and saw those lightning bolts flash across the sky to the ground. It was startling to see even from a distance. I'm so sad about this and so sorry for those who were killed and their families. These storms can come up so fast and furious around here.

[Anonymous]

Such a strange phenomenon. I was out during that storm. Also standing under a tree (because it was the only cover from torrential rain!). So sad for those people.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Such a strange phenomenon. I was out during that storm. Also standing under a tree (because it was the only cover from torrential rain!). So sad for those people.

Do not ever do that, you idiot. Better drenched than dead.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Such a strange phenomenon. I was out during that storm. Also standing under a tree (because it was the only cover from torrential rain!). So sad for those people.

Do not ever do that, you idiot. Better drenched than dead.

Yeah well now I know. I thought the lightning would strike the closest metal pole - which is what these are for?

[Anonymous]

It's weird that that is apparently the second lightening strike in Lafayette Square in 2 years. Is there something in the ground there?

https://wtop.com/dc/2022/08/4-people-in-critical-condition-after-lightning-strike-near-white-house/

I'm not sure what I'd do if I got stuck in Lafayette Square in a thunderstorm. I guess run to the Metro or into a hotel lobby?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Such a strange phenomenon. I was out during that storm. Also standing under a tree (because it was the only cover from torrential rain!). So sad for those people.

Do not ever do that, you idiot. Better drenched than dead.

Yeah well now I know. I thought the lightning would strike the closest metal pole - which is what these are for?

NP here. Lightning is attracted to tall objects in general. Trees are included in that definition. If you are underneath that tree, you become part of it. (The lightning bolt doesn't think that the Washington Monument is really very close, so it was happy to go to the tree.) On a similar note, if you are standing in an open field (or golf course), you are literally THE tall object.

A man in my neighborhood died several years ago because he was seeking shelter under a tree during a derecho. Lightning struck tree. He died a couple of days later in the hospital. Terrible loss.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It's weird that that is apparently the second lightening strike in Lafayette Square in 2 years. Is there something in the ground there?

https://wtop.com/dc/2022/08/4-people-in-critical-condition-after-lightning-strike-near-white-house/

I'm not sure what I'd do if I got stuck in Lafayette Square in a thunderstorm. I guess run to the Metro or into a hotel lobby?

Getting away from the park and heading inside is what you need to do, period. Going to a metro entrance or a hotel are both good options.

[Anonymous]

It's really scary. I feel so bad for the families and I hope the other two are okay. We were just walking home from daycare when the thunder was picking up and I didn't realize how bad it was supposed to get last night.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's weird that that is apparently the second lightening strike in Lafayette Square in 2 years. Is there something in the ground there?

https://wtop.com/dc/2022/08/4-people-in-critical-condition-after-lightning-strike-near-white-house/

I'm not sure what I'd do if I got stuck in Lafayette Square in a thunderstorm. I guess run to the Metro or into a hotel lobby?

Getting away from the park and heading inside is what you need to do, period. Going to a metro entrance or a hotel are both good options.

You can always do lightening position which is what you do when hiking above treeline in a storm - crouch into a ball but stay on your feet. But - shelter in a building or car is the best.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It's really scary. I feel so bad for the families and I hope the other two are okay. We were just walking home from daycare when the thunder was picking up and I didn't realize how bad it was supposed to get last night.

Third person - a 29-year-old - died.

[Anonymous]

What’s the condition of the 4th person currently hospitalized?

[Anonymous]

I mean you NEVER stand under a tree in a thunderstorm - do people really not know this? My 10 yr old knows. I think it needs to be a first lesson to everyone that's really sad people are not aware.