“Lightning never strikes the same place twice” is a common idiom used to mean that unusual events don’t happen twice to the same person or in the same place. But unfortunately,it’s not a very good idiom,because it’s not true.
Lightning is very good at striking the same place twice – you could even say that it’s a special skill of lightning to hit the same place two (or even more!) times.
The Empire State Building,for example,is hit on average 25 times per year,according to the National Weather Service. The iconic New York City landmark was struck eight times in 24 minutes during one storm.
Luckily for the Empire State Building,the structure is built to withstand lightning because it is equipped with a lightning rod,which provides a highway made of conductive materials for the electricity to use so it can get to the ground and disperse safely.
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(MORE:Here’s How To Lightning-Proof Your Home)
Tall buildings aren’t just perfect targets for lightning – they actually draw in lightning simply because of their height.
Most lightning flashes start within a cloud,and a channel forms to move an electrical charge from a cloud to the ground. When the channel gets within about 100 yards from the ground,objects on the ground start to send sparks upward to meet that channel.
Tall objects like skyscrapers,trees and even mountains are more likely to produce the spark that meets the channel,which allows an electric current to travel through the channel and into whatever produced the spark.
(MORE:Research May Explain Why Lightning Does Indeed Strike Twice)
One famous example of two lightning strikes in the same spot in quick succession took place on Nov. 14,1969,when the Saturn V rocket for the Apollo 12 mission was struck twice,only 16 seconds apart just after takeoff.
A Human Lightning Rod?
Much more unlikely than a skyscraper getting struck by lightning is a human getting struck by lightning:In the United States,the odds that you will be struck by lightning are about 1 in 15,300.
And yet,one man was struck a total of seven times,holding the Guinness World Record for most lightning strikes survived.
Roy Cleveland Sullivan was an American park ranger in Shenandoah National Park in Virginia,and he was struck for the first time in 1942. He survived the encounter with only burn marks on his leg and a missing big toe nail.
It was 27 years before Sullivan was struck again in 1969. But between 1970 and 1977,he was struck five more times,bringing his grand total up to seven.
Sara Tonks is a content meteorologist with www.weathernow24.com and has a bachelor’s and a master’s degree from Georgia Tech in Earth and Atmospheric Sciences along with a master’s degree from Unity Environmental University in Marine Science.
