Really Bad Thunderstorm

[vtsteam]

Boy it was pretty wild yesterday -- thunder and lightning all day and buckets of rain until our brook was raging brown froth almost up to the bridge (5 foot rise) and flooding  the field. We're up a bit on the hill, so never threatened by floods. But the power went out after noon, so we fired up the generator.

Today we found out that a good friend, Lucy, a grandmother, had her house hit and burned to the ground by lightning about a mile away, she made it out with her dogs and some clothes, but couldn't get her cats out. Left the door open.

Then after the local volunteer fire department responded, 7 firefighters were struck by one bolt of lightning. All but two were released from the hospital today.

Today it was hot and sunny and the brook went down and I checked out the flooded field. But tonight the thunderstorms are back and the rain is getting louder, so I guess we're in for more of the same. As I'm writing this it's really starting to pound!

[Scuba1]

Sorry to hear that. We just had the butt end of the first tropical storm " Arthur " anchors held and its now north of us, but I thing the outer banks in NC are going to get a pasting tomorrow

[vtsteam]

Yes I saw that on the radar -- in fact Arthur's been upgraded to a hurricane. And I think what we're getting up here, so far away, is related to that system.

One of the earliest hurricanes I've ever heard of...

[tom osselton]

Well Im glad to hear your ok and hope the firefighters are not too badly hurt, the home can always be replaced hopfully she had insurance!

[awemawson]

Gosh dramatic stuff Steve. Glad you are ok. Hope the others recover. You certainly seem to get wild swings of weather.

[Manxmodder]

I would seriously consider fitting a lightning conductor earth strip to my buildings if I lived in a location that is frequently affected by lightning strikes......OZ.

[Scuba1]

I would seriously consider fitting a lightning conductor earth strip to my buildings if I lived in a location that is frequently affected by lightning strikes......OZ.

I have one of them in the middle of the boat... they call it a mast.     We have thunderstorms here 5 times a week at the moment.

[S. Heslop]

Good to hear it didn't damage anything of yours but that's tragic about Lucy.

Y'know for the longest time I thought you were Canadian, vtsteam. I guess I was confusing Vermont with Vancouver!

It's started to rain pretty heavy over here, which always makes me nervous. It doesn't happen often, but sometimes the drains back up into my garage (usually when the council tries to save money for a bit by not cleaning the drains), and it's not fun to clean sewage up no matter how diluted! Anything that stands for too long tends to go... mucousy...

[vtsteam]

Thanks to all here for the concern. I think all the fire fighters have been released, but I'll find out more about what happened after the next school board meeting -- I serve there with the wife of the fire chief. I did hear he wasn't one of the men hit. The names of the men affected haven't been released because they want them to have  time to rest and recover. Lucy has moved in with her son. Our community is very tight in times of trouble, so I'm sure help will be coming in from quite a few people.

We didn't get much more lightning yesterday, but it has continued to rain -- not as fast but definitely looking forward to the end of this storm. 

I was thinking that Lucy had a shingle roof, but saw in the photos that it was metal -- we have a metal roof, too. I now might run a ground strap from the lowest corner to earth rod. We are surrounded by 100' trees, but still, I might feel a little easier with a grounded roof.

I used to live on a boat, and common practice, as Scuba1 mentions is running a ground line from the mast to ground or from the chainplates to ground, if an aluminum mast. My boat was a houseboat I had built and the aluminum rail was the highest point, and that was run to ground. I lived aboard in Florida for several years, and saw plenty of thunderstorms.

Andrew the weather has been really strange lately -- hurricane Irene floods the state, then a 3 month drought, then the worst winter I've seen in 20 years, and now a double lightning strike on a neighbor and first responders. Well, we're due for "normalcy" whatever that is now, I hope.

Vancouver and Vermont are understandably confused with each other -- only about 3000 km separates us!    But since I've just been told I've been calling Simon " Steve" for a couple months now in the forum, I hope I can be forgiven for that  Apologies!

[tom osselton]

I'm glad to hear the firefighters are all doing good!  have you ever gone out looking for fulgurite? They are art themselves.

[vtsteam]

Tom, I'd never heard of a fulgurite before you mentioned it and I looked it up. And of course never have seen one -- unless I didn't know it when I did.

One thing though now that I'm thinking about it. I have a mystery boulder on my property in the woods about 3 feet across and half in the earth that is shattered as if some tremendous force hit it where it lay. I've often wondered what could have caused it to break like that. I don't think it  was frost -- it didn't seem porous, and it wasn't just a couple of cracks that opened. It really looks like it was hit by something.

Perhaps it was lightning, now that we're talking about it.

I know of three nearby pines that were hit by lightning in the last 10 years. And I saw one of them when it happened. It was a huge "cabbage" pine (white pine with multiple leaders) -- maybe 120 feet tall. It just exploded dropping shards of wood out 50 feet all around, one 15 footer chunk of leader impaled in the ground like a dart, and leaving just one leader standing. That's about 100 feet from where the house stands now -- though I was just building it at the time.

Another one was the lone tall pine at the top of a ridge -- a landmark -- left by a logging company 15 years ago. That one was hit just last year -- though I didn't see it. It was green through the winter, then suddenly dead with bark torn off and missing limbs about midway through the summer.

That Benjamin Franklin and his kite story -- I mean the guy was pretty unobservant to have tried that.

[tom osselton]

There was a sequoia tree in victoria bc that was hit by lightning a few years ago it just exploded the lightning turns the sap into a steam like condition I belive it was at goverment house.  And as far as ben Franklin is concerned I still can't see how he lived! I wonder if he had the kite anchored or possibly the string was on the ground!
Some areas fire rockets up with a fine wire in tow to control the strike / study or some have a wire anchored in sand to make fulgurite for sale purposes they are a work of art.

[PekkaNF]

Some places thunder storms are scary thing. I hope everybody is fine.

Once I was in a car on hills on Chihuahua the thunder storm was deffening and amount of water that run down the mountains was incredible. Cascades on dry hill sides. When a thunderbolt hits the rock nearby you are not likely to forget it anytime soon.

How are grounding and thunder strike protection code for residental small buildings in USA. Here it looks like rules are changed very often. My house has a gound pole, ground bar and 16 sg mm wire goes at the attic from one end of the house to the other end, where antena mast is. Looks like a fire hazard to me. Now I think every corner of the tin roof must be grounded on a loop that is underground and circulates the house.

Pekka

[vtsteam]

Tom, wow, rockets and fine wires -- sounds like Ben Franklin all over again. Do they light the fuse with a match and then run like heck, or worse, use electrical ignition with a switch button to launch

(just kidding, I suppose it's really R/C or timer launched.)

Now if had one of those fulgerites I'd be tempted pour metal in it and crack it open to get a casting of the lightning. If you upset one end of the casting and threaded the other you'd have a real lightning bolt.  

Pekka, I don't know whether lightning protection is mandated for private homes elsewhere, but where I live there are no building codes whatsoever. I could live in a teepee if I wanted. That's rare in the U.S. these days, but a situation I greatly appreciate.

I'm sure that right to live as you wish will eventually disappear here too. About every four years somebody starts to agitate for zoning and building codes locally -- usually a newcomer to the area from the city, rather than a native. Generally they lose popularity, are charged higher rates for services than other locals, and put two and two together and quieten down eventually. After 20 years or so they develop an accent, put up a work shed on the sly, and become indistinguishable from everybody else.

[Stilldrillin]

Very pleased you and your neighbours are "ok", Steve! 

Well, we're due for "normalcy" whatever that is now, I hope.

Normal, is good........ 

David D

[PekkaNF]

Pekka, I don't know whether lightning protection is mandated for private homes elsewhere, but where I live there are no building codes whatsoever. I could live in a teepee if I wanted. That's rare in the U.S. these days, but a situation I greatly appreciate.

I'm sure that right to live as you wish will eventually disappear here too. ....

I wish it were like it here too. I would like it even better if the code were good and following it would be voluntary. I would follow draining, electrical and lighting protection. I would ditch roof angle, exterior material/color and such nonsense.

I hope you get to keep your way of life.

Pekka

[tom osselton]

Well here is a different one do you have a ant hill?

[S. Heslop]

Vancouver and Vermont are understandably confused with each other -- only about 3000 km separates us!    But since I've just been told I've been calling Simon " Steve" for a couple months now in the forum, I hope I can be forgiven for that  Apologies!

I didn't mind! I just felt silly correcting something so small at first, then I felt too embarrassed to correct you after leaving it so long.


It's tempting to call Ben Franklin an idiot but then I remember some of the stuff i've done. My skin still crawls whenever I think about when I was 14 and decanting butane gas from camping cylinders into a bigger container, in open air, in the garage... maybe we're just both idiots!

[Scuba1]

Had anothe one with big boomers come over yesterday and another is just starting now. Boy I need ear plugs

[one_rod]

My niece lives is Florida. She updated her Facebook earlier to say;

"Take a nap when it's nice and sunny and wake up to what feels like the world ending... "

So, I guess they have it pretty bad too.   

[DaveH]

The calm before the storm.

 
DaveH

[Scuba1]

Yesterday



That was after the second thunderstorm of the day.

[awemawson]

An excellent reason for living in the UK 

[Scuba1]

An excellent reason for living in the UK 

Not even close to good enough. I rather have a thunderstorm 5 times a week and not drive on the wrong side of the road. 

[vtsteam]

Here we go again! 

Another storm about twice as long as the whole state. Tornado warnings in the red outlines areas. Should be here before midnight.

Looks like it might catch Brass Machine, too, depending on where in Jersey he lives. almost makes it to Canada.

Sheesh.....

Maybe I'll start practicing driving on the other side of the road.....

[awemawson]

Batten down the hatches and stock up on tinned bully beef and bottled water


As I said, an excellent reason for living in the UK!

Hope it passes without causing too much damage

[geoff_p]

Andrew.  About 30-years ago I had borrowed my son's motorbike, and was pottering along somewhere North of Swindon.  A big, dark cloud was looming somewhere to the East of me so I parked up and sat down to watch it.  A twister dropped from the cloud and was heading vaguely towards me.  Being innocent in such matters I sat and watched as several hay-bales were sucked up and tossed many yards to the side of the column.  It was obviously time to move-on, so I did.

[vtsteam]

That must have been a thrill!

[awemawson]

Yes we've had VERY small 'twisters' but nothing like the scale of the old 'yellow brick road'

[vtsteam]

Not normal in this state either, Andrew. Well that last storm turned into a dud. Not even a quarter inch of rain. Not that I'm complaining!

Spent the day the day on tractor running the brush hog over the "lawn".

[tom osselton]

This was apparently seen west of bowden (north of calgary)