Men more at risk - Tenth lightning fatality of the year

There is another lightning fatality to report this year. A man in Naples, Florida, succumbed to his injuries after being struck by lightning on August 31.

Adrián García was at a Naples beach in Florida on August 31 with family members when lightning struck him. They had just entered the water after the rain stopped, and no thunder was heard. In total, three people were hurt, but Adrián suffered irreparable brain damage. He died on the morning of September 14.

On average, lightning kills about 27 people a year in the United States, and injures hundreds. In a lifetime, the odds of being struck by lightning are 1 out of 15,300. Men tend to be struck by lightning more than women and this year Sunday is the day when most fatalities have occurred. So far there have been 4 lightning fatalities in Florida this year, 10 across the U.S.

Lightning can strike as far as 15 miles from the base of a thunderstorm. It doesn´t have to be raining for one to be hit by lightning. It is important to track storms when you have plans outdoors, especially in the summer months when there is a greater risk for storms. Our LightningRadar shows you where the latest lightning strikes have hit and our WeatherRadar shows you where the storms will move to in the coming hours.