Stay away from doors, windows, and fireplaces. Keep as many walls as possible between you and the outside.A well-constructed building is one that is fully enclosed with a roof, walls and floor with electrical wiring, plumbing, telephone line, or antennas to ground the lightning should the building be hit directly.Įven when inside the building, there are safety precautions to take. The safest place to be during a thunderstorm is in a well-constructed building. Paying attention to weather conditions and forecasts allows time to plan for threatening weather and to react appropriately. Protection from lightning begins before the storm. What steps should people take to protect themselves? Remain in the sheltered area for at least 30 minutes after you hear the last thunder. There is NO safe place to be outside in a thunderstorm. Immediately go to the nearest well-constructed building or a fully enclosed, metal-topped vehicle. If you can hear thunder, you are within striking distance. Each second between the flash and the thunderclap represents about 300 metres. Lightning can strike as far as 16 kilometres outside of rainfall areas.īecause light travels faster than sound, you will see lightning before you hear the thunder. Thunder can be a good indicator of lightning – loud crackling means it's close, whereas rumbling means the storm is further away. It tends to strike higher ground and prominent objects, especially materials that are good conductors of electricity, such as metal. Knowing how lightning behaves can help you plan for an approaching storm. Thunderstorms occur most often in late afternoon or evening, and around sunrise. When someone is struck by lightning, an electrical shock occurs that can cause burns and even stop the person's breathing.Īlthough thunder and lightning can occur occasionally during a snowstorm, April to October are the prime thunderstorm months with the highest number of cloud-to ground lightning flashes occurring in July in Canada. training workers on the lightning preparedness planĪ lightning bolt is a million times more powerful than household current, carrying up to 100 million volts of electricity.checking in with all workers after a thunderstorm has passed.making sure the public are evacuated, for example at a golf course, public beach, or swimming pool.establishing criteria for stopping and restarting outdoor work activities.requiring workers to reach a safe location within a specified time period.identifying safe locations and shelters.having a procedure to notify workers about lightning safety warnings.outlining what actions workers must take when hearing thunder, or seeing lightning or warning signs of an approaching storm.Having a preparedness plan and taking safety measures can prevent many lightning deaths and injuries. Employers need to recognize the hazards associated with electrical storms and, where appropriate, have safe procedures and work systems in place, to minimize the risk of injury or harm to employees, and should review these policies seasonally. Knowing what to do when lightning is close is especially important for people who work outdoors (for example, those involved in outdoor recreation, construction workers, road crews, landscapers and farm workers). Most fatalities were people in open areas or taking shelter under a tree. Most of these injuries and fatalities occur between June and August. While the odds of getting struck by lightning are less than one in a million, Environment Canada (2021) says lightning kills 2 to 3 people every year in this country and injures another 80 people. This fact is especially true for people who work outdoors. Lightning kills more Canadians than hail, wind, rain and tornadoes combined, making lightning an important safety consideration.
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