By Chelsea Cook
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
ATLANTA — Lightning struck more than twice in metro Atlanta on Monday afternoon — how about 1,000 times in a 15-minute period?
According to Glenn Burns, Channel 2 TV meteorologist, the city and surrounding region had more than 1,000 lightning strikes over a quarter of an hour around 5:30 p.m. For the rest of the night, lightning averaged 800-900 strikes every 15 minutes.
“This happens every July, but this type of lightning is very, very powerful and very dangerous,” Burns said. “Heat and humidity drive these storms up to 50,000 feet into the atmosphere and the hail and ice bump into each other creating a lot of static electricity.”
Monday’s storm had fire departments responding nonstop across the metro area. In Cobb County, there were three reported house fires because of lightning by 8 p.m. There were no injuries reported. Gwinnett County reported five fires, including one business blaze in which a firefighter was injured and taken to the hospital for fatigue. In Johns Creek, three house fires caused by lightning were reported, again with no injuries.
In metro Atlanta, 3,500 Georgia Power Co. customers were reported without power as of Monday night.
Heavy storms and lightning cancelled 30 Delta and five AirTran flights from Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport, officials said. Others were delayed. Monday night flights headed to Atlanta were delayed by three hours and 18 minutes, said Kathleen Bergen, spokeswoman for the Federal Aviation Administration Southern Region. All departing flights were delayed more than two hours.
Burns said Monday’s lightning was 1,000 times more powerful than typical.
“There are about one million volts in negative lightning; there are over one billion in positive lightning,” he said. “Positive lightning comes from the top of the cloud and hits the ground, while negative lightning works within the cloud, or transfers cloud to cloud.”
The storms appeared to be mostly stationary, Burns said. “There may be a slight eastward drift at 1 or 2 mph, which is why we’re getting the localized street flooding,” he said.
More storms were forecast daily for the rest of the week.
Metro Atlanta has had three lightning-caused deaths this summer year, all teen-aged victims.
On July 13, two teenage girls were struck outside an Austell apartment complex. One was pronounced dead at Grady Hospital; the other died eight days later from her injuries.
On July 30, two teens were holding hands under a tree in Henry County. One teen was holding on to a tree branch and had a heart attack when the lightning struck the sidewalk in front of them. The other survived her injuries and came away with minor burns scars to her neck and shoulders.
On June 19, a teen was struck by lightning in Acworth. The victim survived after a friend flagged down an Acworth police officer.
On May 3, lightning struck the MARTA rail line between the Vine City and Ashby stations, causing crews to close the line for a day. MARTA officials said it was the worst lightning strike to affect the transit system in 30 years.
In the past 16 years, the most lightning-related deaths in one year was five in 1999.
There were 50 Georgia emergency room visits and nine hospitalizations for 2007.
Nate Mayes, a National Weather Service meteorologist, said there is cautionary information people should know about lightning but don’t.
“Most people are struck by lightning before the storm hits,” he said. “The lightning can be at the front of the storm and it doesn’t seem dangerous yet.”
Mayes said people should stay indoors or inside vehicles during a thunderstorm and avoid open fields and bodies of water.
He also warned that lightning can travel through metal pipes and phone lines; it’s advisable to not take showers or baths during a thunderstorm, or to talk on a regular phone.
“The best thing you can do is listen,” Mayes said. “Lightning causes thunder. When you see lightning, start counting. Every five seconds that pass until you hear thunder is a mile in [distance].”
Staff writer Marcus K. Garner contributed to this article.
Copyright 2010 The Atlanta Journal-Constitution