Facts + Statistics: Lightning

In 2018 there were 20 direct lightning fatalities, up from 16 in 2017 which was lowest since record-keeping began in 1941. From 2009 to 2018 on average 27 people died each year from lightning strikes in the United States, according to the National Weather Service.

Florida had the most lightning deaths in 2018 with seven deaths, followed by three in Tennessee, according to statistics from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Arkansas and Missouri each had two deaths directly related to lightning while Alabama, Georgia, Illinois, North Carolina, New York and Texas each reported one death.

 

Lightning Fatalities By State, 2018

 

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Source: U.S. Department of Commerce, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Weather Service.

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Homeowners insurance losses

The number of homeowners insurance claims from lightning strikes in the United States fell in 2018 for the third consecutive year, but the average cost that insurers paid on those claims has soared since 2016, according to the Insurance Information Institute. About $909 million in lightning claims was paid out in 2018 to almost 78,000 policyholders. The value of claims resulting from lightning rose 6.0 percent from 2016 to 2018, but the average cost per claim rose 21.2 percent. “With increased labor and construction costs as well as consumer appetite for smart home products, it’s not surprising that lightning-related homeowners insurance claims costs have risen,” said James Lynch, FCAS MAAA, chief actuary at the I.I.I.

 

Lightning fires in residential vs. non-residential properties

From 2007 to 2011 (latest data available) local U.S. fire departments responded to an average of 22,600 fires per year that were started by lighting, according to an analysis by the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA). These fires caused an average of nine civilian deaths and $451 million in direct property damage per year, according to the NFPA. Home fires accounted for 19 percent of the lightning fires, fires in non-residential structures, including businesses and other non-residential properties, accounted for 7 percent; vehicle fires accounted for 1 percent. The remaining 73 percent were in outdoor and unclassified properties.

Lightning fires in non-residential properties caused an average of $108 million in direct property damage each year from 2007 to 2011, according to the survey. The average annual damage in non-residential properties includes:

• $28 million in storage facilities
• $22 million in places of assembly, such as houses of worship and restaurants
• $19 million in nonhome residential properties such as hotels and motels
• $15 million in mercantile and business properties such as offices, specialty shops and department stores
• $15 million in industrial and manufacturing facilities
• $3 million in outside properties
• $3 million in educational and healthcare facilities
• $3 million in miscellaneous properties

 

Fires Started By Lightning By Type Of Structure, 2007-2011 (1)

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(1) Reported to local fire departments.

Source: National Fire Protection Association.

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Lightning Incidents By Month, 2007-2011

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Source: National Fire Protection Association.

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For more information on lightning, please see The Lightning Protection Institute.