Lightning Strike

[hsguy]

I just got in the house from walking my dog in a snowstorm and the sky lit up and a loud bang. There was a lightning strike about one mile away according to my weather app. Not sure who jumped higher, me or my dog, he is hiding and I am tempted to join him! Strange weather!!

 

[6518John]

John I never knew it could lightening in a snowstorm until I saw it down here myself. I actually called the local office of the National Weather Service about it. The man I talked to said it is usually a harbinger of a BIG snowstorm if the storm is turbulent enough to have lightening.

 

[hsguy]

I hope not, this old man doesn't need any more shovel time!

 

[7tenz]

John I never knew it could lightening in a snowstorm until I saw it down here myself. I actually called the local office of the National Weather Service about it. The man I talked to said it is usually a harbinger of a BIG snowstorm with the storm is turbulent enough to have lightening.

It's rare, but I've seen a couple or so growing up in Upstate NY.

 

[arjay]

Saw some while skiing with my son at A-basin in June some years ago. Interesting experience!
They shut the lifts down after that [emoji38]

 

[6518John]

THUNDERSNOW!!!!


What is thundersnow? Explaining this rare winter storm occurrence - ABC News

 

[CH4]

I just got in the house from walking my dog in a snowstorm and the sky lit up and a loud bang. There was a lightning strike about one mile away according to my weather app. Not sure who jumped higher, me or my dog, he is hiding and I am tempted to join him! Strange weather!!

Sure it wasn't a drive by?
Glad you're ok

 

[charlie sherrill]

I don't see a lot of snow being that I'm from Mississippi. I was stationed in Norfolk, Va. with the Navy and went to visit my Aunt and Uncle in Durham, N.C. around Christmas 1967. I was riding a Greyhound bus with a lot of very drunk people when it started snowing. I didn't think much of it, just hoped the bus stayed on the road. When I got off in Durham my Aunt and Uncle were waiting to pick me up and it started thundering and lightening. I'd never seen much snow, much less the thunder and lightening. It was something I will always remember. Fast forward to about 1990 and I was back home in Mississippi near Hattiesburg. We had a freak snowstorm (they always are here) and it was one of the best lightening and thunder storms I've ever seen. It went on for over an hour. I bundled up and stood under my carport while it was going on. I've never seen that here before or since even though I've seen lots of warm weather thunder and lightening and more hurricanes and tornadoes than I need.

 

[Golddollar]

John I never knew it could lightening in a snowstorm until I saw it down here myself. I actually called the local office of the National Weather Service about it. The man I talked to said it is usually a harbinger of a BIG snowstorm with the storm is turbulent enough to have lightening.

Right after I moved to Frederick, MD in 1985 I saw lightning during a snowstorm. That was something I never saw before.

 

[chief38]

It certainly lets you know you're alive!

 

[Ivan the Butcher]

In 1978 "The Blizzard of '78" Hit the Columbus Ohio area at about 10 PM with an major show of lightning and thunder. I had got home from a date and had to walk the dog in it! (He cooperated and we were back inside in about 5 minutes!)

Ivan

 

[NYlakesider]

It's rare, but I've seen a couple or so growing up in Upstate NY.

Me too, up here in the mountains we get it on occasion. Certainly gets your attention!

 

[Old Arkansawyer]

First part of March 68, about 2 inches of rain were forecast. Wind from
the North and the temp. dropped to 28. Lightning, thunder and 16 inches of snow. East-West roads were drifted full, Oklahoma highway 33 from Tulsa to the Arkansas state line had 13 foot high drifts. A couple days later the temp. was in the 70's but it takes a long time to melt that much snow. When it did melt, it was a muddy mess.
Power lines were down everywhere, a lot of small towns had no electricity, phone, water for a couple weeks.

 

[billwill]

Thunder snow.........watch out that wacky weather channel guy will show up in your yard and do his thunder snow jumping around!

 

[7tenz]

Me too, up here in the mountains we get it on occasion. Certainly gets your attention!

Yep I'm from the boonies of the Catskills. We are all rednecks from around my general area..

 

[max]

John, you must have been carrying too many Smiths. All that iron attracted the lightning.

 

[CA Escapee]

Years ago I was working a Johnson Space Center, White Sands, NM. It was probably in August or September, definitely during monsoon season when you'd have clear skies in the morning, then the thunderheads would build up around noon, and torrential rain, thunder and lightning would go on until after dark.

I went outside after lunch to roll up the windows on my car because the thunderheads were beginning to build up. We still had probably 90% blue skies with the closest cloud about a 1/2 mile (1.6 km) away. I hopped in the car and with the door still open I started to run the windows up.

All of a sudden, out of the corner of my eye I saw a flash of light come out of the sky at an angle at the same time there was a horrendous boom.

Horizontal lightning had traveled from, (I'm guessing,) the cloud 1/2 mile away and struck a transformer on a phone pole about 100 yds (30.5 m) from me.

I did a bit of reading up on horizontal lightning later that afternoon.

 

[500SNW]

I'm a NWS Storm Spotter and we have several weather conditions where the NWS wants to immediately be notified of. Interestingly enough thunder during a snowstorm is one of the conditions requiring notification. It is because of what 6518John referred to above...thunder during snowy weather is usually an indicator of heavy - and perhaps unanticipated heavier-than-predicted precip.

 

[hsguy]

John, you must have been carrying too many Smiths. All that iron attracted the lightning.

Max, I need to start buying some plastic ones!