Positive electrical charges gather in the clouds and negative charges gather in the ground. When the attraction between these two charges are strong enough they come together in the form of the lightning. Lightning rod equipment properly manufactured and installed dissipates these charges and protect your property.
Interactive Map and Lightening Alert Program:
NOTUS alerts you of lightning and many weather warnings via cell phone, mobile device and e-mail. A unique feature of NOTUS is its interactive capability to manage your weather alerting on the Internet via an intuitive interactive Google Map interface allowing you to move the location for alerting and choose between a variety of alerting and forecast options.
Lightning Information is Critical for:
- Weather forecasters to issue warnings to the public.
- Air traffic controllers to re-route airline traffic.
- To warn pilots before vulnerable takeoffs and landings at airports.
- Forestry officials to focus firefighting efforts.
- Electric power utilities to prepare crews for timely dispatches.
- Outdoor facilities to warn public and athletes to seek safe shelter.
- Communications networks to re-route traffic to avoid interruptions.
US Statistics:
A new study published today by the National Weather Service is loaded with statistics on lightning deaths in the United States. For instance: did you know most lightning deaths occur during what is deemed "leisure activity?" Or that 82% of people killed by lightning are male?
Regarding leisure activities, you'll probably be surprised to hear that golf, in fact, accounted for surprisingly few lighting deaths, with a total of just 8 fatalities between 2006 and 2012. Surprisingly few, at least (what with the holding a metal rod in the air), in relation to bike riding (10 deaths), soccer (12 deaths), camping (15 deaths) or fishing, which was the clear front-runner with 26 recorded deaths. “When people think of lightning deaths, they usually think of golf,” said John Jensienius, a lightning safely specialist with the NWS; but "NOAA has made a concerted effort to raise lightning awareness in the golf community since we began the campaign in 2001," he said, "and we believe our outreach has made a huge difference since lightning-related deaths on golf courses have decreased by 75 percent.”
For More Information Contact: http://www.struckbylightning.org/
How to Protect Your Buildings from Lighting Strikes:
- Install a Lightning Protection System with the UL Master Label that complies with current nationally recognized codes. Lightning protection systems consist of lightning rods (air terminals) and associated fittings connected by heavy cables to grounding equipment which provide a path for lightning current to travel safely to the ground.
- Install UL listed surge arresters at your junction box and telephone equipment to prevent power surges from entering the home or other buildings on power or telephone lines. Power surges caused by lightning strikes are then diverted to the ground and both wiring and appliances are protected.
- Install UL listed transient voltage sure suppressers in receptacles to which computers and other electronic equipment are connected in order to limit the voltage to 1 1/2 times the normal (maximum for solid state devices).
- By taking these precautions, the next time a thunderstorm strikes your area, you can relax and enjoy this magnificent display of power. Knowing something about how lightning works should heighten your appreciation of that awesome force in the sky.
LIGHTNING IS RESPONSIBLE FOR AN ESTIMATED ONE BILLION DOLLARS A YEAR IN PROPERTY DAMAGES AND LOSSES
