BOSTON (FOX 25 / MyFoxBoston.com) – A Rockland man is in critical condition after being struck by lightning on Castle Island.

Steve O’Brien, 50, is in critical condition at Boston Medical Center.  His family tells us that he was taking his normal post-work walk around Castle Island when he was struck in the head by a bolt of lightning.

The bolt struck his head and exited his back, causing burns on several parts of his body.  Someone revived O’Brien, but the family is unsure who.

O’Brien lives in Rockland but was born in Southie.  His family tells us that he often walks around Castle Island after work.  They say he’s a great guy and  hard worker.  The family is holding vigil by his hospital bed.

via Man in critical condition after being struck by lightning.

RUSSELLVILLE, Ky. — A 16-year-old girl in Russellville, Ky., died Thursday morning after being struck by lightning, according to the Logan County Sheriff’s Department.

The girl, Mary Ella Leid, was digging for potatoes in an open field behind her house when she was struck.

The Logan County coroner pronounced her dead Thursday.

Thunderstorms affected southern Kentucky and Middle Tennessee for much of the day.

At 12:35 p.m., trees were blown down in Castalian Springs, Tenn., on Rock Springs Road in Sumner County. Trees were blown down at Berea Church Road and Coles Ferry in Lebanon, Tenn.

Large tree limbs were down on Wallace Lane, just west of Hillsboro Pike in Nashville. Numerous trees and power lines were blown down across southern Dickson County.

Large trees were blow down on Baxter Road in Cookeville. Many trees and power lines were damaged across northern White County.

A tree blew down onto power lines in Summertown, Tenn., north of Lawrenceburg. Also, many trees down were on Polk Street in Tullahoma, Tenn.

via Ky. Girl Fatally Struck By Lightning – Nashville Weather News Story – WSMV Nashville.

The husband of a Rockland selectman has died at Boston Medical Center days after he was struck by lightning while walking on Castle Island.

50-year-old Stephen O’Brien, the husband of Rockland selectman Debbie O’Brien passed away Monday morning following the serious injuries he suffered as a result of the strike.

He had been in critical condition and under the close watch of doctors at Boston Medical Center since he was rushed to the hospital Thursday night in cardiac arrest.

O’Brien was walking on the island Thursday night when a storm suddenly rolled in and he was struck.

The victim’s son has set up a foundation webpage to help his family get by financially in the aftermath of O’Brien’s death.

Visit  www.ObiesFund.org to donate; the fund will help pay for medical bills and the family’s expenses.

“We’ve had constant support,” said the victim’s son. “Sometimes throughout the night there two or three people at the hospital, but during the day there’s upwards to twenty or thirty people there supporting my family.”

O’Brien’s son says his father had always been passionate about the Bruins, the Patriots and his family.

“Hes the best guy I know…I’ve never heard any one say one thing bad about my father, and every one I talk to says the same thing, ‘hes a caring guy, and he loves everybody,’” said O’Brien’s son.

O’Brien, a husband, father of three, a grandfather, was a native of South Boston.

via 95.9 WATD – Rockland: Local man described as ‘caring guy’ dies days after lightning strike.

An Alabama woman died at University Hospital Friday, three days after she was struck by lightning during a military training exercise at Fort Knox.

Carmela Kirkland, 18, of Dothan, Ala., died at 4:50 p.m., Deputy Coroner Jim Wesley said.

She had been taking part in the Army ROTC Leader’s Training Course at Fort Knox. A second woman was also injured in the strike.

They were struck Tuesday while their unit was attempting to move to a safer location during a thunderstorm.

The 29-day course is designed for college students who want to join a collegiate Army ROTC program.

via Alabama woman struck by lightning at Fort Knox dies | courier-journal.com | The Courier-Journal.

Police have identified a Hamilton man who died in a lightning storm late Wednesday afternoon.

He is Ronald McCreadie, 68. Police said this afternoon that officials have not confirmed he was killed by lightning.

Three citizens tried to revive a man believed to be struck by lightning during a severe thunderstorm that rolled through the Hamilton area.

One of the people helping was a nurse, but the 68-year-old did not survive the apparent strike yesterday afternoon on the west Mountain.

He was transported by ambulance to the Hamilton General Hospital shortly after 5:30 p.m. Police say an autopsy will be scheduled to determine his exact cause of death. They were not releasing his name last night until family had been notified, but did confirm he lived in the neighbourhood.

Passerby Peter Dach, 62, was riding his bike through what is known by local residents as the Woodside Inn Woods when he says he saw the lightning hit the man.

Dach, a retired steelworker, wonders if his bike saved him from getting hit.

“I was riding my bike along the trail and the rain had just started,” said Dach. “It was coming down quite a bit. I was about 10 to 15 metres away from this fellow I saw walking on the trail. He was coming up to a big tree. He was sort of walking towards this big tree and all of a sudden, bang.”

“I saw him hit by lightning. The sky lighted up and everything. There was a big crash. It sounded like a cannon going off.”

He said the stocky man was walking toward the tree carrying a book.

“He was walking with the book and all of a sudden he put the book down,” Dach said. “He was walking towards the tree and all of a sudden, bang, and over he goes. (The flash) was like it came from a welding iron. I saw a flash. He was into a step and all of a sudden he was down and he rolled on his back.”

Dach went to see if he was conscious.

“I tried to make eye contact to see if he could speak or anything,” said Dach.

“There was no response. I just slapped him and said, ‘Can you hear me? Can you hear me?’”

He said he could not feel a pulse.

“I tried CPR for 3 to 5 minutes, but got on my bike and went to (Upper) Paradise there to flag someone down,” he said. “Luckily, there was a nurse.”

They called 911 and flagged down another man to help before returning to the trail and the victim.

The woodlot, with a trail linked to the Bruce Trail, is between Scenic Drive and Sanatorium Road, on the edge of the Niagara Escarpment.

“I was giving him CPR,” Dach recalled. “(The other man) stepped in to give him CPR. He said he had just finished a course. He and I worked on him together while the (emergency) services came in. The nurse came down and she and (the other man) worked on him. I went out to the roadway to flag the fire engine and police car into the area, so that they could get to him.”

He estimated emergency personnel were on the scene within 15 minutes and “they were right on top of him with all of the equipment.”

The death of the man was the most tragic aspect of the storm that saw lightning and thunder shake the city, setting off security alarms in buildings. There were also reports of tree fires and lightning strikes at a local church, homes and a Flamborough community centre.

An investigator from the Ontario Fire Marshal’s office was to visit the scene of a Waterdown house fire this morning to determine if it was gutted by a lightning strike.

Firefighters were called to the vacant derelict Parkside farmhouse at about 4:30 p.m. Wednesday and found it fully engulfed. District Fire Chief Brian Stark said firefighters had to force their way in to tackle the fire, suggesting it was not vandalism.

via TheSpec.com – Local – Storm victim identified by police.

July is the deadliest month for lightning strikes historically and July 2010 is proving no different.

A total of 21 people have been killed so far this year with 10 of those deaths this month alone.

Five people have been killed since Sunday, including a man struck down while riding a bike on Wednesday in Livingston County, Illinois.

All 21 lightning deaths have come since May 1st with 16 states recording at least 1 death including Georgia, Alabama, Connecticut, Louisiana, Missouri, Wyoming, Illinois, Ohio, Indiana, Florida, North Carolina, New Jersey, Maryland, Colorado, Texas and Arizona.

Georgia unfortunately, leads the nation with 3 recorded fatalities and all 3 deaths occurred in the Atlanta metro area.

While July is the deadliest month for lightning with an average of around 17 deaths per year, the summer months of June and August are considered to be just as deadly with both months averaging around 12 deaths per year, which brings us to lightning safety.

The lightning campaign that is being promoted is when thunder roars, go indoors and or if you can hear thunder, you are close enough to be struck by lightning.

After reviewing the lightning fatalities thus far this year, that campaign while good, for the most part does not apply to typical summer thunderstorms.

Thunderstorms during the summer months are typically random in nature and can pop-up with little notice, meaning you may not even hear thunder before the first lightning strike occurs, which may happen right over your head.

This combined with the fact that more people spend time outdoors (sporting events, boating, swimming, mowing grass, etc), has contributed to most of the lightning deaths and injuries so far.

Some of the deaths reported from sudden thunderstorms include a 53 year old golfer in Tucson, Arizona, a 15 year old swimmer in Huntsville, Alabama, a 53 year old motorcyclist in Chaffee County, Colorado and a 40 year old man walking on St. Joe Beach, Florida.

These are all people who didn’t just ignore approaching lightning storms, but were caught off guard by pop-up random thunderstorms that developed near or over their area.

In the case of the recent Florida lightning death on Sunday, the man and his family saw signs of darkening clouds and began leaving the beach, when he was struck and killed.   There was no thunder before the deadly lightning strike occurred.

While recognizing the signs of developing thunderstorms are considered one of the tips for lightning safety, it should be the main safety tip, especially this time of year and it should be included into a new lightning campaign!!

Some signs of sudden developing thunderstorms include darkening and building cumulus clouds and a sudden shift or increase in winds.

Whether you want to or not, you must literally become a weather observer when there is a threat for thunderstorms on a day you have outdoor plans.

(NOTE: The United States averages around 57 lightning deaths per year)

via US lightning deaths rise to 21; lightning campaign does not fit most summer thunderstorms.

ANNAPOLIS — The Maryland Natural Resources Police say it appears that a lightning strike killed a 63-year-old Annapolis man who died Sunday while jet skiing on the Chesapeake Bay, just south of the Bay Bridge.

NRP says it appears the man, Warren Douglas Smith, was racing back to port because of a thunderstorm. Investigators say it appears Smith was not struck directly by lightning, but was electrocuted by a nearby strike.

Another jet ski rider, 65-year-old Elmer Sappington of Severn, was about 75 to 100 feet from Smith, but was not harmed by the lightning strike.

NRP reminds boaters that summer thunderstorms are common and frequently occur during the late evening hours. Lightning can strike over ten miles away from heavy rain and storms.

Anyone caught on the water during a thunderstorm should move to land and seek shelter immediately. As a matter of practice, boaters should review the weather forecast before leaving the dock and plan trips accordingly.

via MARYLAND: Lightning strike blamed in jet ski rider’s death | delmarvanow.com | The Daily Times.

The number of people killed by Sunday’s storms in the Washington area has risen to four.

Carl Henn of Rockville, who was hit by lightning, died Tuesday night.

Police now say they believe it was also lightning that killed Warren Douglas Smith, 63, of Annapolis.

The Maryland Natural Resources Police say Smith was riding a jet ski a half mile south of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge. He was racing back to port as the storm blew in when lightning hit near him, electrocuting him, police believe.

Friends say Carl Henn, 48, was a decided environmentalist, who was working in a garden when the storm hit.

Henn ran for Rockville City Council at least three times, they say. He never won, but he was more involved in his community than most.

“It is absolutely an incredible loss. he was one of the very few positive influences in the city–an activist, but a positive activist,” said Rockville Mayor Phyllis Marcuccio.

Henn was at a picnic at King Farm when the fierce storm suddenly hit. He was celebrating the harvest from the three community gardens whose creation he spearheaded.

dale mccarthy was there:

“It was hail at the top of that hill, winds that were beyond belief,” said Dale McCarthy who was there. “It was a microburst kind of situation, it was a tornado touchdown basically and we thought everyone had run to their cars.”

But Henn had ridden his bike, and never made it to safety.

“We found Carl on the ground,” Dennis McCarthy said. “And he had no pulse and was not breathing, so Andre and I yelled to somebody else to call 911.”

But they kept getting busy signals. They finally drove Henn to the hospital in a neighbor’s car.

His friends said it was inexcusable that they couldn’t get through to 911.

Carl Henn was the ideal public citizen, friends say, admired for his civic work, and deeply mourned by his wife, Carol, and daughters, Jessica and Allison.

In addition to Henn and Smith, the other victims of the storm include 6-year-old Eric Lawson, who was killed when a tree fell on him at a Sterling recreation center.

And Michelle Humanick, 44, who died when a tree crashed into her minivan in Beltsville, pinning her and her mother.

ABC 7 News reported on Lawson’s and Humanick’s deaths Sunday night at wjla.com.

via Henn’s Death Raises Storm Victims to 4 | ABC 7 News.

ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) Maryland Natural Resources Police say lightning killed an Annapolis man caught on a personal watercraft during a thunderstorm near the Bay Bridge.

Officials say 63-year-old Warren Douglas Smith and another man were riding two personal watercraft Sunday evening a half-mile south of the bay Bridge when a storm blew in. Smith was pronounced dead at Anne Arundel Medical Center.

Natural Resources Police say a preliminary autopsy determined Smith died of electrocution. Investigators believe he was not hit directly by lightning but electrocuted by a nearby strike. Smith’s companion, 65-year-old Elmer Sappington, was 75 to 100 feet away on another watercraft but was not harmed.

A final autopsy is expected to be conducted in the next month.

via Maryland Storm Death Attributed to Lightning, | WJTV.com.

ST. JOE BEACH, Fla. — A Georgia man has died after being struck by lightning during his Florida vacation.

The Gulf County Sheriff’s Office says 40-year-old David Eugene Lee was hit Sunday while visiting a Panhandle beach with his wife and children.

They spotted gathering storm clouds and began to leave the beach when Lee’s wife heard thunder. She turned around to find her husband collapsed.

Lee was pronounced dead after being rushed to a Port St. Joe hospital.

via Florida vacationer killed by lightning strike – Florida AP – MiamiHerald.com.