The phrase “lightning never strikes the same place twice” means when something really bad (or really good) happens, it won’t happen again. Of course, that isn’t always true. It’s also a myth that lightning never strikes the same place twice. In the short term, lightning is more likely to follow the same channel it has already used. Over the long term, lightning eventually revisits a place. On average, lightning re-strikes a location once every hundred years. It re-strikes more often in places that get a lot of lightning (e.g. Lake Maracaibo or the entire state of Florida) and less frequently in places that rarely see lightning.
Key Takeaways: Can Lightning Strike the Same Place Twice
- Lightning can and does strike the same location multiple times. Tall or conductive structures increase the likelihood of repeated strikes.
- A single lightning bolt often consists of multiple return strokes, so what looks like one strike actually hits a spot more than once in rapid succession.
- Height, conductivity, and the electrical charge in clouds all play a role in where lightning hits.
- Safety first: When lightning is near, seek proper shelter and avoid contact with conductive materials.
Lightning Usually Strikes More Than Once
Lightning striking the same place is the norm rather than the exception. High-speed photography shows most cloud-to-ground lightning strikes consists of three or four strokes. Sometimes as many as 30 strikes occur. If you watch lightning during a thunderstorm, you can observe these re-strikes as a strobe effect.
The reason lightning typically uses the same channel over and over is because the electrical discharge follows the path of least resistance. The site where lightning strikes the ground is a positive-charged leader. Positive leaders on the ground decay more quickly than negative leaders in the clouds, but bidirectional leaders form when positive leaders decay. The bidirectional or recoil leaders try to re-ionize the network. When they do, a return stroke follows most of the original strike path. Repeat strikes are more common in cloud-to-ground lightning than in cloud-to-cloud strikes because recoil leaders don’t form on negative leaders.
Why the Same Spot?
Even in separate events, some places usually experience lightning strikes due to three main factors:
- Topography: Mountain peaks and tall ridges can also experience repeated strikes.
- Height: Taller objects form a shorter gap between the cloud and the ground, making them more likely targets.
- Conductivity: Metal and water conduct electricity well, drawing lightning to them.
Places Where Lightning Strikes Repeatedly
Here are a few examples of locations that experience repeated lightning strikes. If you photograph these places during a thunderstorm, you’ll likely record the phenomenon.
Empire State Building (New York City):
Perhaps the most iconic example of repeated lightning strikes is the Empire State Building. On average, lightning strikes it dozens of times each year. Its height and steel framework make it a magnet for electrical discharges. Despite all the hits, the building remains safe because it’s equipped with lightning rods and a grounding system that direct electricity safely into the ground.
Willis (Sears) Tower (Chicago):
As one of the tallest buildings in the United States, the Willis Tower is another frequent lightning target. It has a lightning protection system consisting of rods and cables that channel strikes harmlessly down into the Earth.
Space Needle (Seattle):
The Space Needle in Seattle is an interesting case study in lightning strikes. Its iconic saucer shape and height make it susceptible during stormy weather, though it experiences fewer strikes than some taller structures in storm-prone regions.
These landmarks illustrate that lightning doesn’t “use up” a location—rather, if conditions are right, lightning will repeatedly strike the same place over and over again.
Lightning Can Strike People Twice (or More)
According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the chance of being struck by lightning in any single year is 1 in 700,000. The odds of being struck in your lifetime is 1 in 3,000. Of course, the odds don’t tell the whole story. Someone who avoids lightning has a lower lifetime risk than a person enjoys swimming at the beach during a thunderstorm! The chance of being struck twice by lightning is 1 in 9 million. While the chances of lightning striking a person twice are low, they are still higher than the odds of winning the Powerball.
Roy C. Sullivan is the Guinness World Record holder for surviving the most lightning strikes. Roy was struck seven times in his life. However, a South Carolina man, Melvin Roberts, was reportedly struck 10 times before his death. Neither man died from lightning — they took their own lives.
Did You Know?
- Lightning Heats the Air to temperatures as high as 30,000 K—roughly five times hotter than the surface of the Sun!
- Florida is the Lightning Capital of the United States, experiencing more strikes per square mile than any other state.
- Multiple Returns: A single lightning bolt often contains 5 to 30 return strokes, which is why it can appear to flicker.
- Earth vs. Other Planets: Jupiter and Venus also exhibit lightning-like phenomena, showing that electrical discharges aren’t limited to Earth.
- Safety Trivia: Contrary to popular belief, it’s not your car’s tires that protect you in a thunderstorm—it’s the metal frame diverting electricity around the passengers to the ground.
How to Avoid Being Struck by Lightning
You can reduce your chance of being struck once (or twice) by lightning by avoiding high-risk behaviors. Lightning forms in thunderstorms, volcanoes, and dust storms. You’re not safe out in the open, under a tree or simple shelter, talking on a landline phone, using an electrical appliance, near metal plumbing, near wires, or on metal-reinforced concrete. You’re fairly safe enclosed inside metal, which acts as a Faraday cage, so long as you don’t touch the metal. Examples of safe places include buildings, airplanes, and automobiles.
References
- Cooray, Vernon (2014). An Introduction to Lightning. Springer Verlag. doi:10.1007/978-94-017-8938-7. ISBN 978-94-017-8937-0.
- Rakov, Vladimir A.; Uman, Martin A. (2003). Lightning: Physics and Effects. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0521583275.
- Uman, Martin A. (1986). All About Lightning. Dover Publications, Inc. pp. 103–110. ISBN 978-0-486-25237-7.