Summer storms can be mesmerizing and beautiful, but also extremely dangerous. To help keep you safe this season in case of a severe storm, we’ve outlined some tips:
*Keep away from all appliances connected to electricity, including a landline phone, and stay out of the shower. If lightning strikes your house or your pipes, the current can travel through the wires and the water to strike you.
*Take care when driving during a storm. Puddles can seem shallower than they are and cause serious damage, and if you’re touching anything metal or the radio dial when lightning strikes your car, you could get hit, too.
*Know that lightning can travel as far as 10 miles outside of the storm itself, and thunder can be heard just as far. Don’t leave your home until you can’t hear the thunder anymore after a storm.
*If you are outside during a storm, try to stay low to the ground and find complete structures. Makeshift shelters, like gazebos and golf carts, can’t protect you from a strike of lightning, so keep moving until you reach safety.
*Have an emergency kit ready in your home, full of flashlights, a cellphone, a first-aid kit, water bottles, and a battery-operated radio, in case of a loss of power.
Potential for a storm is always around, so make sure you take all precautions to stay as safe as possible at all times.
~B. Gyomory
