What happens if lightning strikes a tent

Dead trees are unpredictable, and even wind can cause them to topple over sometimes. Also, always read the ground. If it has been a very wet season, and the ground is very soft and damp, trees may uproot much more easily. Lightning is a huge risk when camping during a thunderstorm no matter what your camping situation is.

Although the chances are improbable of getting hit by lightning in most cases, being outside puts you at a much higher risk than usual. Being prepared for a thunderstorm is a critical step when planning a camping trip. Always be conscious of your surroundings, check the weather forecast, and have a plan before the storm hits.

These things may save your life. When camping, safety is always the top priority. There are many steps that you can take to be prepared, but nothing completely guarantees protection in a thunderstorm. The following steps teach you some of the precautions that you can take to make sure you stay as safe as possible.

Research states that lightning strikes can be fatal up to ten meters away from where it strikes. Shelters such as gazebos or picnic shelters with open sides are not considered safe unless they have a proper way to ground the lightning, such as a lightning rod or electrical wires to follow.

Having a plan means to know a way of escape in case a tree falls on or near your campsite, flooding occurs, or a forest fire is started. The same rules apply when camping as with a swimming pool during a thunderstorm.

If you are forced to sleep in a tent in such a situation it is crucial to look out for an appropriate spot offering enough protection — not only from lightning strikes. Heavy rainfalls can flood it and make it moist. If worst comes to worst torrents or even landslides can come down the mountainside. You are to thoroughly consider all these things if signs of a thunderstorm catch your eye.

Tatonka tip: The most important rule is to constantly observe the weather. Especially in the mountains, thunderstorms mostly involve heavy drops of temperature.

If possible, you should — especially in the mountains — try to seek shelter in a solid building, like an alpine hut, as a thunderstorm is approaching. A vehicle, if nearby, could be used as a safe place as well. A tent, on the other hand, offers no protection from lightning at all. Therefor, the energy jumps or breaks through the isolated spots. Consequently, electric potential accumulates in the soil beneath — dangerous step voltage is the result.

This is life-threatening since electricity would run through the body. As we can see, a tent is no protection against lightning. To reduce the possibility of being hit by lightning you need to consider a few important aspects for your encampment. Lightning shouldn't hit the tent directly, but it could hit something else nearby. That can cause large ground currents, which causes voltage over a distance accross the ground.

Inside your sleeping bag on a insulated pad on top of the tent floor should be fairly safe from voltages caused by large ground currents. If you are in badly sited tent, like in the middle of a flat area with the tent being the tallest thing around, then staying put inside your sleepping bag is still the best thing to do in a bad circumstance.

If lightning does strike your tent, then there is at least some chance the current will be conducted by the wet skin of the tent or the tent poles if metal. This will make the current go around you instead of thru you to the ground. It will be very unpleasant nonetheless, but still a whole lot better than getting zapped directly. I agree with being sure to properly site the camp but I disagree with laying on the ground during thunderstorms.

Crouching on the balls of your feet is the safest course of action. Do not lay on the ground Sign up to join this community. The best answers are voted up and rise to the top. Stack Overflow for Teams — Collaborate and share knowledge with a private group. Create a free Team What is Teams? Learn more. There is little evidence that the shape of a tent can influence in any way the chances of a lightning strike.

One thing to mention, in the case of Bell tents, the pole in middle usually made of metal , can act as a lightning rod, therefore you should avoid using them.

Unfortunately, there is no extra tent lightning protection that you can get in order to make them safer. Although your chances of getting struck by lightning while camping in the wild are low, about 1 in 1. Your email address will not be published.