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Lightning Strikes

Pinklefish

Gone But Not Forgotten
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news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story2&u=/021025/168/2iqdw.html&e=1&ncid=996
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Teammates gather around Colombian soccer player Hermam Gaviria, 32, after he was struck by lightning during practice in Cali, Colombia, 185 miles southwest of Bogota Thursday, Oct. 24, 2002. Gaviria, who competed in the 1994 World Cup was killed Thursday when he was struck by lightning during practice. (AP Photo/El Pais)
 
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Tony Blair's Plane Hit by Lightning

from an associated press story:
The plane carrying British Prime Minister Tony Blair to a meeting with President Bush was struck by lightning as it approached the United States on Wednesday, a reporter on board said. No injuries or damage were reported.

Britain's Press Association news agency said Blair's chartered British Airways Boeing 777 was struck by a lightning bolt as it approached Andrews Air Force Base in Maryland at about 10,000 feet. It landed 20 minutes later, at 5:05 p.m.

Jon Smith, a Press Association reporter traveling with Blair, reported that the bolt hit the jet's left wing. The plane did not change course or descend and the pilot reassured passengers that "there's nothing to worry about."

Blair's 10 Downing Street office said it was not aware of the incident.

Blair flew on to the presidential retreat at Camp David for a working dinner with Bush. The two leaders will meet against Thursday to discuss the war in Iraq and plans for the country's future.

original story here

(Could someone be trying to send him a message?)
 
It's obviously evil lightning sent by saddams weapons of mass destruction - Saddams got one of those Tesla gun thingys working:hmph:
 
Hey, kiddies, I have more for you!

"Jeb Bush's plane hit by lightning" Exactly a month ago.

cue eerie music...
 
Interesting to speculate where UK politics would be left if TB
was taken out of the equation . . .

I have met a couple of people - by no means regular psychics - who
have said they have had premonitions that Blair will be assassinated.

These predate the present conflict.

Maybe it is their hatred surfacing as dream communications or an
acknowledgement that along with Presidential style may come
Presidential reckonings. :eek:
 
Of course, the alternate spin is that one sails through a lightning strike, unscathed, because one is on the side of Right...

Have to be careful when trying to suggest supernatural implications to natural events... all too easily can cut either way...

;)

Shadow
 
Shadow said:
Of course, the alternate spin is that one sails through a lightning strike, unscathed, because one is on the side of Right...

Have to be careful when trying to suggest supernatural implications to natural events... all too easily can cut either way...
Like when that briefcase bomb went off under Hitler's chair and he escaped virtually unscathed, you mean?

There are forces at work, we know not wot of, eh? :p
 
Well, lightning intervened at Thermopylae: the Greeks thought it was a sign from Zeus that victory was assured...let that be a warning to you: Don't try to put spin on lightning!




Except ball lightning, possibly.
 
now that truly is strange! I have a friend ( an artist who often paints 'en pleine air') who has been struck by lightning whilst sitting painting and also one of his relations - might be his sister- also was struck a year earlier and was knocked unconscious but survived! Once in a family is enough....is there a message here:D
 
Newsflash: Leaders of the 'God is Dead' movement announced that their rally, long scheduled to be held next weekend at the Cholacov home, has been cancelled. :D
 
God rocks da mic

Lightning Strikes Preacher Who Asked For Sign
Bolt Hits Steeple, Travels Through Guest Evangelist's Microphone

FOREST, Ohio -- Damage to a church in Forest, Ohio, is estimated at $20,000 after a preacher asked God for a sign.
A member of the First Baptist Church said a guest evangelist was preaching repentance and seeking a sign from God when lightning struck the steeple.
Ronnie Cheney called the incident "awesome, just awesome!"

Cheney said the lightning traveled through the microphone, blew out the sound system and enveloped the preacher, who wasn't hurt.
Afterward, services resumed for about 20 minutes until the congregation realized the church was on fire. The building was evacuated.




story here

and Americans cant spell. But thats not very Fortean
 
More evidence (if any were needed after the Book of Job) that God has a really malicious sense of humour.
 
Reminds me of the story of the preacher from FT a couple of years back who urged several of his congregation to be bitten by poisonous snakes before allowing himself to be bitten. They survived, he dropped dead!
 
Then there was the preacher a few years ago who, to demonstrate some vague theological argument, shot himself in the head with a blank-loaded pistol and put himself in hospital. Presumably he thought the gun would fire a sort of harmless powder...
 
There's a safety distance of thirty feet with blanks...stupid sod.
 
Lightning hits preacher after call to God

will you ask god for a sign now?

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/3044178.stm

:wow:

A congregation in the United States was left stunned when lightning struck a church moments after a visiting preacher asked God for a sign.
Church members in the town of Forest in the state of Ohio said the preacher had been emphasising the importance of penance when, in the course of his prayers, he called on the heavens above.

The lightning struck the steeple, then hit the preacher himself when it travelled through electrical wiring to his microphone.

Local authorities said he was not injured.

"It was awesome, just awesome," said church member Ronnie Cheney, who was among the congregation when the strike hit, told the Findlay Courier newspaper.

"You could hear the storm building outside... he just kept asking God what else he needed to say.

"He was asking for a sign and he got one."

Afterwards services resumed, however churchgoers realised after 20 minutes that the building was on fire and evacuated.

"It was kind of interesting hearing the preacher talk about what had happened," Forest Fire Chief Doug Hawkin admitted.

The fire was put out after three hours, but damage to the church is estimated at around $20,000.
 
For the second time; thanks Schnor..

:rofl:

Reminds me of a tale recounted by a re-enacting Skald I once met. During a re-enactment their 'chief' raised his hands to the sky and asked the gods for their blessing in the coming 'battle'. At that moment a black cloud that had been moving along the horizon let out a peal of lightning an thunder behind his back.

A warrior turned to the Skald and asked "he does know this isn't real, doesn't he?"
"He knows it's not real" the Skald replied before nodding towards the gathering storm, "the question is do they?"
 
Bump! Several Lightning Strike threads merged.

And here's a new story
A holidaymaker narrowly escaped death when lightning struck her tongue stud in an electrical storm.
Becky Nyang, 26, was temporarily blinded, unable to talk and badly blistered by the bolt of electricity that surged through her body via the piercing.

Ms Nyang, an airport worker from Reading, Berkshire, was on holiday in Corfu when she and a friend were caught in a downpour.

A flash of lightning bounced off a nearby archway and hit her in the face, where it was conducted by the metal jewellery in her tongue.

The charge was so hot it left her with blisters on her mouth, face and feet and she could not speak for three days.

Ms Nyang, who said she feared she was going to die, must await tests from doctors at the Royal Berkshire Hospital before returning to work for Virgin at Heathrow.

She told reporters: "All I could see was lightning, nothing else.

"It hit me and everything was just bright blue. It zapped me frozen.

"My body shook for about 10 minutes, although I didn't feel the pain until later."

She added: "I know I was so close to losing my life and never seeing my family and friends again.

"I have been given another chance and every second is precious."
 
Inverurie Jones said:
There's a safety distance of thirty feet with blanks...stupid sod.
Which reminds me of the strange case of Jon Erik Hexum who was a young up and coming TV actor who didn't know this important piece of information.
 
Some other footballers killed by lightning:

Lightning kills five in Malawi.
A lightning bolt has struck a crowded football field in Malawi, killing at least five people. More than 100 others have been injured in the incident in Nsanje. The lightning hit the field during a match between two local teams, instantly killing five and leaving scores of injured people lying on the ground, says Vuto Chembe, who was watching the match.
"Among the injured were the football players, " said Chembe.
It is not uncommon for people to be killed by lightening during Malawi's rainy season, but Sunday's toll was considered unusually high. Police spokesman Oliver Soko says the high death toll was the result of the stadium being crowded.

Ananova.com - 26 November 2001

Footballer killed by lightning.
A village footballer was killed after lightning struck the pitch at a friendly match in Malaysia. Police say 20-year-old Mohamed Zabidi Ahdullah died at the scene. Two other players, aged 28 and 31, were also injured during the incident in Dungun. They were taken to hospital, reports the country's Star newspaper.

Ananova.com - 24 May 2001
 
Smoke Ring Picture

I'm torn between whether to put this here, or in News Stories. I recall seeing pictures like this in UFO books before, though, hence my choice.

http://www.woai.com/news/local/story.aspx?content_id=58E16947-08A6-4EE6-8707-91A714472FD9

It's only a picture, but it's got a lot of people talking about what exactly it is. A ring of some sort formed in the sky Tuesday morning at about 10:30 during the thunderstorms.

San Antonian Chuck Fehlis took the pictures of the phenomenon with a digital camera. He says he and all his co-workers were stumped!

“It was way up in the sky, and it slowly just went across,” Fehlis told News 4 WOAI. “It grew as it went across, and it slowly broke up. And that happened probably over three or four minutes.”




This article has some very nice pictures accompanying it.
 
Mysterious Smoke Ring
You'd have thought it was the end of the world. Actually, some here thought it was. News 4 WOAI tracked down an explanation for a bizarre sighting in San Antonio's skies.

it started with rain, but then -- out of the sky…

“It looked like smoke, but it was a perfect circle,” said Chuck Fehlis.

“A mushroom cloud - dark gray… developed right above it,” said Rod Snowden.

“It began to grow, grow, grow,” said Kelly Snowden. “It was actually sort of scary. And I thought,’Why don't I have my camera?’”

Chuck did -- and he snapped some very interesting shots.



“It looked about this big,” Chuck told News 4 WOAI, extending his hands “But it was way up in the sky, and it slowly just kind of went across.”

Folks all over the northeast side watched - transfixed. Would it swallow them whole? Could it be?

Yolanda Young also saw the ring of smoke. She heard a crack of thunder, and saw the smoke from her office on the northeast side.

“I looked out and saw a black trail of smoke and above it was this complete black smoke ring,” Yolanda told WOAI.com. “It was rising higher and getting stretched out.”

Kimberly Montoya, one of Yolanda’s coworkers, grabbed her camera and snapped a few pictures.



“We joked with each other about it being a ‘sign from God... Revelation was here!’” Yolanda wrote in an email to WOAI.com.

“I hope it's not the end of the world,” Kelly Snowden told News 4 WOAI with a smile.

It's not -- but the National Weather Service says it is rare to capture this on camera.

“I just saw this huge bright, white lightning bolt strike down,” recalled Kelly.

What it hit was a transformer. Most folks saw the aftermath.

“The cloud just started to mushroom - probably 50 to 60 feet off the ground,” explained Rod Snowden.

And it turned into a ring, ominously floating across the sky.

“I guess at that point it started to break loose on the other side of the airport, probably around about [Highway] 281,” Rod said.

The mysterious ring dissipated, leaving no proof of its existence except these photos.

There are no reports of injuries from the blast.
(See link for photos.)
 
...and a longer account, with a pic, of the Forest, Ohio strike reported on page 1.
"Do you have an arm like God’s, and can your voice thunder like his?"
- Job 40:9
Does God speak in mysterious ways? Some people think so after a recent revival service at the First Baptist Church in Forest, Ohio.

The Rev. Don Hardman, a traveling evangelist from Virginia, was preaching when a summer storm began rumbling in the distance.

According to the Bible, Mr. Hardman told the crowd, God’s voice often sounds like thunder. "That’s right, God! We hear you!" he said, looking heavenward, and - KA-POW! - a bolt of lightning struck the little church, located in Hardin County about 60 miles southeast of Toledo.

"There was a big flash right in front of everyone’s eyes," said 15-year-old Erick Smith, who was sitting in a back pew at the July 1 service. "He was wearing a cordless mike and I saw sparks of electricity go from his belt buckle up to his microphone."

Erick’s mother, Ronnie Cheney, said there was a "blue aura" in the building as the lights flickered off and on and the church’s sound system exploded.

"It just lasted a second, but it was pretty wild to say the least," Mrs. Cheney said.

After a pause, Mr. Hardman resumed his sermon and preached for another 20 minutes.

"We tried to focus back on what the evangelist was saying until a neighbor lady came in the back door and said the lightning had hit the steeple," Mrs. Cheney said. "Then one of the church trustees said the steeple was on fire."

"I smelled something burning," young Smith said, "but I thought it was the sound system. We didn’t know it was the steeple."

Meanwhile, several heavy clay tiles had fallen from the steeple and crushed a car in the parking lot, Mrs. Cheney said. The wrecked car was parked where Mr. Hardman had kept his family’s motor home until earlier that day, when he moved it because of problems with a nearby bees nest.

"That was the first miracle, that the tiles didn’t crush the Hardmans’ camper," Mrs. Cheney said.

Since the incident, hundreds of people have driven past the church to get a glimpse of the site where God apparently spoke thunderously.

Reporters from around the globe, including the BBC in London, have been calling for comments from the Rev. Mike Hannah, pastor of the 75-member church. Mrs. Cheney was interviewed live by a Los Angeles radio station Wednesday morning.

It’s the most attention anyone can remember the town of 1,000 ever getting, Mrs. Cheney said.

"I think the world is in such turmoil and the media grabbed onto this as a quote-unquote sign from God," she said. "Brother Hardman was on the Today show and probably spoke to more people in those few minutes than he had in his whole career. But I personally don’t think it’s a sign.

"When you’re a believer, nothing surprises you," she said. "When you’re a nonbeliever or a skeptic, you go, ‘Whoa, if a little bitty church in Forest can be communicated with by God, then a little bitty person like myself can be communicated with.’"

Her husband, Jeff Cheney, owns a local construction company that is repairing the 100-year-old church and estimated the damage at ,000, Mrs. Cheney said. The repairs should be completed in about two weeks.
 
I think they figure it's from lightning causing an explosion mid-air. Very odd, anyway.
 
i would love it

to be something more than photoshop but as there isnt much more than an image whats the fuss its a dark ring in the sky apparently
ive seen the cat do things which are far more entertaining...
who cares just whatever.......................................................
 
Bump! Smoke ring story merged here (where I had already posted it) because the report explicitly states the ring was the result of a lightning strike on an electricity transformer.

Sometimes a smoke ring is just a ring of smoke... :)
 
Lightning kills giraffe at Disney park
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. - Lightning struck and killed a giraffe at Disney's Animal Kingdom as the animal roamed among tourists, company officials said Wednesday.

The accident occurred Monday as a severe lightning storm moved over the Kilimanjaro Safari attraction, Disney spokeswoman Diane Ledder said.

"To the best of my knowledge, it was a quick death," she said.

It was unclear if any tourists saw the lighting strike.

Betsy the giraffe, who was 6 years old, was the first animal to die from a lightning strike at the theme park, Ledder said. "It's very unfortunate and unusual ... but it has happened in the past" at other U.S. parks, she said.

The park has lightning rods placed throughout the safari area to protect animals. Animals can also be brought inside during severe weather, but the storm came through with too little warning, Ledder said.
 
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