Man Playing Golf During Thunderstorm Dies After Getting Struck by Lightning

On Wednesday, the National Weather Service (NWS) reported that a man lost his life after he was struck by lightning at a New Jersey country club.

The First Lightning Fatality

This is the first lightning fatality that has been recorded in the United States this year. The NWS reported that an unknown man was badly injured at Burlington Country Club in Westampton Township, New Jersey, which sits approximately 30 minutes northeast of Philadelphia.

Officials confirmed through Action News that it had taken place around 3:45 p.m. EDT when the victim was playing golf between the 6th and 7th hole in the course of a thunderstorm.

Brian Lada, AccuWeather Meteorologist said: "Thunderstorms were popping up across the mid-Atlantic throughout the afternoon with recurrent lightning." He added that thunderstorms are generally known to be severe when it is producing hail or wind gusts over 55 mph.

The thunderstorm that tracked close to Westampton, New Jersey, this afternoon did not reach the severe standard but reveals that any thunderstorm can be dangerous.

The Second-most Dangerous Activity

The NWS documented 17 lightning fatalities during 2020. Lightning takes the life of an average of 49 people every year in the U.S., and hundreds more are left injured. According to a 2020 report by the National Lightning Safety Council, 418 people were struck and killed by lightning across the nation from 2006 through 2019. Fatalities that were sports-related, which includes golf, made up around 14% of these fatalities.

Golf is the second-most risky activity after soccer of all sports-related lightning fatalities, the National Lightning Safety Council said. According to the analysis, fishermen also accounted for about four times as many casualties as golfers, and beach activities and camping each accounted for two times as many fatalities as golf.

The summer months of June, July and August are also regarded as the peak months for lightning activity. Since 2006, July has had more fatalities that are lightning-related than any other month, followed by June, according to the council.

Lightning

Lightning is one of the major causes of weather-related fatalities. But the chances of being struck by lightning in a particular year are only about 1 in 500,000. However, some factors can put you at a higher risk of being struck. Seasonal, occupational, and regional differences affect your risk of being struck by lightning. Although lightning affects all areas in the United States, the southeastern states are mostly in danger.

Lightning usually decreases from the southeast to the northwest, excluding a few places like the Rocky Mountains, where topography causes constant thunderstorms during the summer. New Jersey, Colorado, Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Texas, Missouri, Ohio, North Carolina, Texas, and Pennsylvania have the highest number of lightning injuries and deaths. Florida is regarded as the "lightning capital" of the country, with over 2,000 lightning injuries over the past 50 years.

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