After a bad thunderstorm, I awoke to find that my horse, Belle, had been killed by lightning. Her body lay only 100 feet from my bedroom window. Her sidekick, Pancho the donkey, appeared unharmed. Common-sense observation combined with science has armed us with the information we need to place ourselves where lightning is least likely to strike. There is no guarantee of 100 percent safety but you can beat the odds by knowing your enemy.
Lightning is static on a large scale.
When areas of negative and positive ions build up enough charge during storm formation, they rush together to create lightning. The air becomes so superheated during this collision that it explodes, resulting in thunder. Because light travels faster than sound, we see the flash before we hear the thunder. Storm over and pick up the latest issue of Chattanooga On The Move for the rest of Georgiana Kotarski's article.