Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: TUESDAY, June 21, 1994 TAG: 9406210131
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: B-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: By MICHAEL STOWE STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Weather experts say the tragedy on an island in Lake Moomaw last week - one of the country's worst electrical storm accidents ever - possibly could have been avoided if the victims had known not to take cover under a tree.
"That's the cardinal rule of lightning safety," said Chip Knappenberger of the Virginia State Climatology Office.
The bodies of five boaters were discovered Friday on an island . The West Virginia family apparently was seeking shelter from a sudden thunderstorm that pelted the lake Thursday afternoon.
The victims were identified as Harrison Christian, 44; his wife, Sheila Kay, 37; and their son, Matthew, 10. Also killed were Robert Johnson, Christian's uncle, and his wife Marjorie, 63.
Grant Goodge, who has been compiling statistics at the National Climatic Weather Center for 25 years, said he could not recall another incident in which a single bolt of lightning killed five people standing on the ground.
The only electrical storm accident he could remember with more fatalities happened in 1963. In that incident, 81 people were killed after lightning caused a plane traveling over Elkton, Md., to crash.
Knappenberger said the high number of lightning deaths in Virginia this year should warn outdoor-lovers that they need to know proper lightning safety procedures.
Folks caught in storms naturally head for trees to keep dry, but Knappenberger said that is the wrong move because lightning is attracted to tall objects.
"It's better to get wet than stand under a tree," the climatologist said.
A few other pointers: Stay away from open water, tractors and other metal farm equipment, wire fences, clotheslines and metal pipes. Also avoid telephone poles and standing on a hilltop in an open field.
"The best place to be is in a ditch," Knappenberger said.
Do not, however, lie flat on the ground.
A National Weather Service fact sheet recommends dropping to the ground in a crouched position and putting your hands on your knees. The balls of your feet should be the only part of your body touching the ground.
Of course, the best protection is to stay indoors, but even that is not a guarantee of safety. About 1 percent of lightning deaths happen to people talking on the phone.
In addition to the five deaths last week at Moomaw, a 26-year-old man was struck by lightning and killed in May. He was playing golf at a course in Henrico County.
This is the first year the state has had more than one lightning death since 1988, when two people were killed, according to National Climatic Weather Center statistics.
There were 43 people killed by lightning across the country last year, including one in Virginia.
Knappenberger said lightning bolts vary in intensity. Many people hit directly by a weak bolt survive, while others in the vicinity of a powerful bolt are killed almost instantly.
Such is the case at Moomaw Lake last week. When the storm hit around 2:30 p.m. Thursday, the family sought shelter in a grove of pines about 300 yards long and 100 yards wide, according to police. Their severely burned bodies were found within a 15-foot radius.
Goodge said the average bolt of lightning is about 90,000 degrees, about five to six times as hot as the surface of the sun. It releases enough energy to operate a 100-watt bulb continuously for a day.
While it is good to be ready, do not get too alarmed. The odds of getting struck by lightning are estimated at 1 in 600,000, according to the National Weather Service.
by CNB