By Carol Tannenhauser
A teenage boy had a brush with lightning in Central Park on Thursday afternoon and survived, an NYPD spokesperson told West Side Rag.
The unidentified teen had taken shelter under a tree in the vicinity of 100th Street and East Drive during a sudden downpour, the New York Times reported. “When lightning hit the tree, electrical current transferred from the tree to the boy’s metal chain necklace, but the boy, 15, received only minor burns.”
He was taken to Columbia Presbyterian Weill-Cornell Medical Center in stable condition.
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Shocking.
Lol
I am sure it came as a much greater shock to him!
Glad he is ok.
Hope the boy’s burns are minor and he recovers soon. A very scary experience.
The BOOM that hit that tree near W100th street in Central Park shook my whole apartment, and I’m on73rd and Broadway. When I heard that someone was ‘hit’, we didn’t think they would survive. So happy this young man lived to tell his story, and takes full advantage of his ‘2nd chance’ in this life.
Sheltering under a tree in a lightning storm is a bad idea. Lightning strikes the highest nearby point, which, with no tall buildings around, is a tree. Better to be in an open field than under a tree. And in an open field, maybe even lie flat so that the highest nearby point isn’t you. Better to be soaked than fried.
Just looked this up. It’s generally better to seek safe and enclosed shelters immediately (aka not gazebos, for example, because they are open),
BUT if you are in an open field for some reason during a lightning storm and can’t find safe and enclosed shelters,
“Never lie flat on the ground. Crouch down in a ball-like position with your head tucked and hands over your ears so that you are down low with minimal contact with the ground.”
“Never shelter under an isolated tree. If you are in a forest, shelter near lower trees.”
Reading the rest the advice here is v helpful as well
https://www.cdc.gov/lightning/safety/index.html
Schools need to teach the young what to do, what to avoid during such weather conditions
Why is it up to schools to teach basic life skills to kids? Parents can’t do that anymore?
Glad he survived, hope his injuries are not too bad. Wondering why he was transported to Columbia Presbyterian-Weil-Cornell when the Mt. Sinai ER is within a block or two of the incident.
Burn center. Sinai is only level 2 trauma.
It’s the only pediatric burn unit in NYC.
Have you been to the ER at Mt Sinai. It’s hell on earth. Columbia probably isn’t mch better, but they may be better equiped to handle his type of injury…who knows?
So lucky! I was camping with a group of my teen friends upstate next to the St. Lawrence River when our tent pole got hit by lightening. One of the guys was holding the pole when it happened and he couldn’t feel his arm for an hour. We all got thrown back against the tent, as we were sitting in a circle, then we scrambled up and hightailed it to the restrooms, where we should’ve gone in the first place. When my father picked us up not long after he said that if we hadn’t put the rubber ground mat down, the one he had insisted upon us taking, it might have been a lot worse. For once I didn’t give him any argument.
It’s good to remember never stand under
a tree during a lightening thunderstorm.
I understand. 90 per cent of lightening
victims survive
I’m so glad he survived! I hope more teach their children (and their not so children, because it seems some adults aren’t aware, either) of the dangers of lightening and of sheltering under a tree in a thunderstorm. Rain will get you wet. Lightening will … well … do worse. Perhaps instead of nonstop political ads, there can be an initiative for some PSAs for reminding people of the dangers and the best choices in times of fast-moving thunderstorms.
He should play lotto!
When you hear thunder
Don’t run under
a tree.
I was just thinking of this Pennies from Heaven lyric.
My cat was scared of the storm and looked alarmed. I told her it’s ok, we have a millions and one chance of being hit by lightning. I live 3 blocks from CP. I do hope the boy is ok.