What Happens If You Get Struck By Lightning? | Unveiled

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What Happens If You Get Struck by Lightning?</h4>

When a thunderstorm rolls in it’s an exhilarating display of nature. Dark and ominous clouds, teeming rain and howling winds. But there’s one aspect that makes the entire thing just that little bit more spectacular, or terrifying, depending on how you feel about it. The flash of lightning; a burst of magnificent power, sent as if from heaven itself.  But, no matter how god-driven it might seem, there’s also the potential for some serious destruction.

So, this is Unveiled, and today we’re answering the extraordinary question; what actually happens if you get struck by lightning?

Famously, the chances are low that you ever actually will get struck by lightning, at all. Estimates vary, but we’re talking between one in three hundred thousand, and one in one million or more, that it would happen to you during any one year. This blink-and-you’ll-miss-it phenomenon is so rare, in fact… that it’s almost universally used as the measuring stick that almost every other rare thing possible is held up against. Will I win the lottery this week? I’m more likely to get struck by lightning. Or, so the saying goes. Nevertheless, we still aren’t dealing with impossibilities here. Many people - thousands of people, even - have been struck by lightning before. And, perhaps surprisingly, most do survive. The majority of statistics calculate that while one in ten events do kill those that are hit… nine in ten are left alive, although with effects and injuries of varying severity. In all cases, what the body goes through is extremely tough. Often, it’s a life-changing experience, triggering disabilities and conditions that remain forever.

Broadly, the impact can be split into two; the physical and the mental. And, physically speaking, there are two main areas of concern; the burns and the current. The burns are pretty self-explanatory, but they can be pretty horrific all the same. On average, there are around one billion joules of energy in any one bolt of lightning. Estimates reckon at around thirty million volts. During the instant in which it hits, it can carry temperatures that are hotter than those on the surface of the sun. Clearly, the human body is not built to withstand even close to that. And so, in some cases (although rare) a lightning strike could literally set you on fire. Those instances are usually more dependent on the surrounding conditions, however… if, say, conductive materials combine to encase you within a hellish ball of spreading flame. Here, in the best case scenario, if you remain conscious enough, you’d find somewhere to escape to as quickly as you can. In the worst case, it’s a death not unlike being tossed into a volcano. 

As more people survive lightning strikes than succumb to them, however, it’s not as though all events are quite so extreme. In fact, no one event is the same as another, as so much depends on the specific circumstances - including, again, the surrounding environment, but also what the person is wearing, how exactly the electricity passes through them, and what happens immediately afterwards. More often than not it isn’t straight up fire and explosions. There just isn’t enough time for that, with the electricity passing through in milliseconds. In some cases, it can even be difficult to recognise that a person has just been struck by lightning, at all. But, in all cases, identifying what’s happened is key; in the short and long term.

In general, if you want to live and recover, you need to find help fast, but that’s incredibly difficult to do if, say, your own skin is literally blistering away. Or if you’re out cold and actually completely unaware of what’s just happened to you. Or, if the experience has understandably left you dazed and unsure. Indeed, when the worst does happen, and a victim does die, it’s sometimes in part because they’re struck by lightning in an isolated location; perhaps across a wide open, rural, and sparsely populated landscape. Under those conditions, they often just can’t get to where they need to be.

Upon finding help, or upon being found, however, you better hope that whoever it is you’ve crossed paths with knows their stuff. First off, and even without immediately obvious burns, there could be telltale signs all over your body. Specified lightning burns can set in within a few minutes or, more commonly, a few hours. These are a spreading, almost network of thin red lines, branching across the skin. What they actually reveal are the burst capillaries underneath the skin, ruptured by the lightning itself. But, more than anything else, they’re an iconic, immediately identifiable symptom of being struck by lightning.

Crucially, all official guidelines recommend that it is safe to approach and touch someone who has just suffered a lightning strike - even a direct hit. The human body does not store electrical charge, so the power of the bolt will have passed through. If the person is found to be without a pulse, then CPR should be started immediately - according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. And here we move onto the other key factor as to how a lightning strike plays out; how the current within passes through your body.

All of your major organs are at risk in some way or another, but the most important - in terms of living or dying - is the heart. Those who get struck by lightning often suffer cardiac arrest as a result. Such unexpected power dealt by nature simply isn’t something that our hearts are anticipating, or are built to withstand. And, even if you don’t suffer cardiac arrest straight away, it is vital that you’re tested as soon as possible. Your heart may not have stopped completely, but it’s possible - even likely - that your body will display tremors, murmurs and fluctuations. All of which could cause more major issues, at any moment. 

Understandably, there is significant internal trauma elsewhere, too, which can manifest in various ways. The shockwave of a lightning strike is enough to take out your hearing - usually temporarily, sometimes permanently. The same wave of energy can affect your bones, joints and muscles, even long after the strike occurs. Involuntary twitching isn’t only a stereotype as seen in movies; there is a chance that your body really will react that way, as it tries to make sense of what’s happened to it. There’s pressure on your lungs, on your ribcage. Your digestive system, your nervous system. Blurred vision is another potential knock on effect; again, typically for a short while afterwards, but sometimes for longer or forever. Essentially, nothing within your body goes untouched or unscathed.

The psychological strain is more difficult to pinpoint, despite hundreds of case studies now contributing to what we know. Generally, mood disorders are common in those who’ve been struck by lightning in the past. Some vague confusion is expected, especially at the time or soon afterwards, while mental and physical fatigue is also often reported. Some version of memory loss is usually cited, as well, with many people even left completely unable to recall the moment of the strike, or the time leading up to it. Unsurprisingly, there are some cases of post traumatic stress disorder… while fears, phobias and anxieties are often heightened way beyond anything experienced before the lightning hit. How do you think you would react if you were ever struck by lightning? How would it make you feel about future storms, about being outside, or about electrical products or environments in general? Let us know in the comments!

For now, getting struck by lightning is still an exceptionally rare event. And, even if it does happen to you, you are much more likely to live than die. The data isn’t evenly spread. Lightning injuries are more common in some countries than others, mostly due to the differing weather patterns to begin with. But, to end on some good news, these kinds of events are decreasing across the board. The global population today has a better understanding of how to stay safe in a lightning storm. Structures are built to better withstand the dangers. And, when there is a hit, we’re better prepared to react and hopefully save those affected. Because that’s what happens when you get struck by lightning.