Another cyclist killed by lightning

[vernon levy]

As well as cycling, one of my other hobbies is free flight aeromodelling
i.e. flying without radio control. I have just learned that a prominent
modeller was killed on Sunday at Barkston Heath, an RAF air base whilst
recovering his plane by bycicle.

This should reinforce the need to dismount and seek shelter in thundery
weather. I've experienced a thunderstorm at Barkstone and it wasn't a
pleasant experience as an airbase by its very nature has very few places to
take shelter and it's all too easy to be the highest object for several
hundred metres. I had advance warning of the impending storm as I was
receiving electric shocks through the metal lines of a control line
plane....I was effectively flying a 60' long lightning conductor and the
storm hit 15 minutes after my first shocks, I'd packed up immediately and
retreated to the car within minutes of the shocks. I just wonder if there
was much warning of the storm and how much notice the modellers took. Some
of them are *so* competitive that they take unecessary risks

Don't take risks with thunder storms it's gamble that I'll no longer take as
I don't feel as invulnerable as I used to as a feckless youth


Here's the report of the incident.

"It is with great sadness that we inform you of a tragic accident which
occurred at the Free Flight Nationals on Sunday 30th May.

Peter Harris from Kidderminster who was a very well known and respected
member of the Free Flight community was cycling across the airfield during a
very sudden and violent thunderstorm when he was struck by lightning. First
aid was administered at the scene and an ambulance crew arrived within
minutes to take Peter to hospital in Grantham. Sadly, Peter died of his
injuries.

 

[Simon Mason]

"vernon levy" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> As well as cycling, one of my other hobbies is free flight aeromodelling
> i.e. flying without radio control. I have just learned that a prominent
> modeller was killed on Sunday at Barkston Heath, an RAF air base whilst
> recovering his plane by bycicle.


This was the same bloke in my earlier post, there was only cyclist killed
recently.
--
Simon M.

 

[Sue]

In message <[email protected]>, vernon levy
<[email protected]> writes
>
>This should reinforce the need to dismount and seek shelter in thundery
>weather. I've experienced a thunderstorm at Barkstone and it wasn't a
>pleasant experience as an airbase by its very nature has very few places to
>take shelter and it's all too easy to be the highest object for several
>hundred metres.

LIghtning strikes build up to the moment of discharge; the target patch
of ground develops an opposite charge which is then neutralised by the
strike.
Lightning experts advise that if you feel tingling and your hair stands
on end, the spot you're standing on is about to be hit, and you should
run away as fast as possible. On a bicycle in the middle of a airfield
you should have no difficulty making your escape.

I'm told a lightning conductor protects only a 45-degree cone around its
tip, and anything further away can still be hit. That's why church
towers with square tops generally have four or five of them, while a
steeple only needs one.
A conductor less than two metres tall (you) would not attract strikes
from hundreds of metres away, or even several metres. This means you'd
be extremely unlucky to be hit, even standing in the open, but it's
still bound to happen sometime.

Furthermore, the unfortunate modeller was elderly; a fit younger chap in
Sussex a few years ago was very little injured when struck while
cycling. A Canadian park ranger has survived three lightning strikes,
albeit with injuries caused by being thrown off a motor cycle!

So save your anxiety for the carnage on our roads...

--
Sue ];)

 

[Simon Mason]

Sue <[email protected]> wrote in message news:<[email protected]>...

> Lightning experts advise that if you feel tingling and your hair stands
> on end, the spot you're standing on is about to be hit, and you should
> run away as fast as possible. On a bicycle in the middle of a airfield
> you should have no difficulty making your escape.


Assuming you can cycle faster than a lightning bolt! It's not that
spot that is going to be hit, it's you. Experts advise assuming a
crouching postion thus->

http://www.kidslightning.info/lsaftposi.htm

"If you are isolated in a level field or prairie and you feel your
hair stand on end (which indicates that lightning is about to strike),
bend forward, putting your hands on your knees. A position with feet
together and crouching while removing all metal objects is
recommended. Do not lie flat on the ground"

http://www.fema.gov/hazards/thunderstorms/thunderf.shtm

You can also see two brothers with their hair on end here, just
before they were killed.

http://www.erh.noaa.gov/er/cae/svrwx/ltg.htm

--
Simon M.