It may be more likely that you will win the lottery, but that doesn’t stop most grey nomads from being extremely wary of the danger of lightning strikes.
When camping in remote areas, travellers often get to see up close and personal just how frighteningly powerful the spectacular electrical storms that Mother Nature unleashes can be … and so their wariness is understandable.
Every year, about 10 people die from lightning strikes in Australia, with a further 100 injured.
The odds may be long but people do get struck.
According to experts, being on the water is one of the worst places you can be when lightning starts streaking across the sky, a theory borne out by the
A fishing rod was completely destroyed after being struck by lightning. PIC: ABC/Kim Ford
terrifying experience of a group of fishermen off Broome.
Kim Ford and two friends took out a six-metre aluminium boat about 18 kilometres offshore this week, and watched as a storm developed over town. They became increasingly nervous as the lightning strikes got closer and closer … until one actually struck a fishing rod that was in a rod holder hanging over the side of their boat.
“It hit the tip of the rod, travelled down and blew the reel apart,” Mr Ford told the ABC. “When I heard the big bang I knew exactly what happened because I could smell burning straight away.”
The rod – which was completely destroyed – was less than a metre from Mr Ford, who said another strike then hit nearby, turning the water red.
He said the speed with which Mother Nature turned on them was incredible.
“We came straight home and had a quick drink, just a scull in a shot glass each and said, ‘mate, we cheated death’,” he said. “Unless you experience it and see it, you can’t explain until you’re in that situation.”
Grant Kirkby, a specialist in lightning risk mitigation, says that the best advice for anyone caught in a storm wishing to lower their risk of being hit by lightning is to get inside.
“No place outdoors is safe,” he told the ABC. “And the last place you want to stand is under a tree … lightning wants to get to the ground and a tree can often be the quickest way for it to get there; if you are standing near it, the electricity will get you too.”
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Some years ago, working in Joburg and living in a pleasant motel encampment, I was standing at the door looking out with an electrical storm overhead. Strike on the roof just above my head … got my attention. I think my ears are still ringing from the bang.