Lightning detection networks spotted billions of bolts in 2023, but an analysis of the electricity found patterns to Mother Nature’s madness.
Vaisala, a global technology company, said wind farms, tall buildings and the Miami metro were all top targets of thunderstorms during the past year.
The report tallied both cloud-to-cloud lightning and bolts that struck the ground. In total, more than 2.1 billion lightning bolts were counted around the world in 2023.
More than 10% of the world’s lightning occurs in the U.S., with Texas, Florida and Oklahoma leading the way.
The cities with the highest density of lightning were all located in either the Sunshine State or the Gulf Coast, with the Florida cities of Miami-Fort Lauderdale, Palm Bay, Cape Coral, Orlando and Jacksonville all topping the list.
The region around Disney’s Magic Kingdom was the lightning capital of the country in 2022 but slipped to No. 4 in the most recent rankings.
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The highest concentration of strikes occurred on June 14, 2023, when clusters of storms impacted the Northeast, southern Plains and Southeast.
The report did not delve into damage claims directly tied to strikes. Data compiled by the Insurance Information Institute, however, showed annual estimates usually come in at about $1 billion.
Storm damage claims have risen in recent years due to vulnerabilities associated with green energy – a trend that Vaisala found with lightning and wind turbines.
Analysts said wind farms in Texas and Oklahoma topped its annual report for most strikes, with some farms even seeing 1,000 encounters with electricity from the sky.
“Wind turbines have lightning protection systems that channel electrical energy safely into the ground. Even so, lightning damage costs the industry more than $100 million a year and accounts for 60% of blade losses,” authors of the report wrote.
Of the 25 events that NOAA said caused damage of at least a billion dollars or more in 2023, 19 included thunderstorms with the potential of plenty of lightning.
“Thunderstorms were the costliest natural catastrophe in the United States in 2023,” Samuli Hänninen, head of Vaisala Xweather, stated. “In addition to the financial impact, severe weather can be life-threatening. Lightning triggers wildfires, disrupts power, impacts businesses, and poses a significant hazard to life and property, especially without the right safety measures in place.”
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Not only do lightning strikes have financial consequences for about two dozen people across the country every year, but the encounters can also turn deadly.
According to National Weather Service data, in 2023, 13 people were killed by lightning strikes, with almost all taking part in outdoor activities when the thunder roared.
Florida and Texas topped the list for most human impacts, accounting for nearly half of all fatalities.
Even though lightning deaths have trended downward over the last several years, the odds of being struck are much greater than winning the lottery at 1 out of 1.5 million instances. That lends credence to a common phrase used by meteorologists during storms: “When thunder roars, go indoors.”