Hair standing up during thunderstorm no laughing matter

With the frequent spring and early summer thunderstorms occurring across the Zululand region in recent weeks, and undoubtedly more to come, safety must always come first.

One lesser known fact is that people’s hair – be it the hair on their head or on their arms – can stand on end when lightning is particularly close, with the possibility of being struck.

ALSO READ: How to protect yourself from a lightning strike injury

While this peculiar phenomenon could be construed as the ideal selfie moment, be warned – it is no laughing matter.

In 1975, American brothers Michael and Sean McQuilken, then 19 and 16 respectively, went on a trip to Sequoia National Park together with their sister Mary Sutton, brother Jeff and friend Margie Warthen.

Speaking to CBS News in 2013 for the first time since the incident, the family said they hoped their story would provide valuable scientific help.

Describing the incident to the news agency, Michael recalled a ‘huge explosion’, ‘and Sean is doubled over and there is smoke coming out of his back’.

Recalling the events preceding the lightning strike, Michael said they were hiking when ‘all of a sudden, I noticed all of our hair started sticking up into the air’.

He took a photo of his sister and was about to take a photo of their friend when it started hailing.

The youngsters were rushing down the mountain when they were struck by lightning.

Debilitating pain, vomiting and burning skin were some of the immediate symptoms, but the friends told CBS News that they wondered whether or not depression and other illnesses acquired subsequently were linked to the lightning strike.

According to the article, these photographs appear to be the only photographic evidence of the hair-on-end phenomenon related to lightning strikes, and it is used to warn people that should this happen to them, they may be in imminent danger.

If your hair stands on end during a thunderstorm, it’s a sign that lightning is about to strike and you should take immediate action:

• Seek shelter: Go inside a large building, house, or vehicle
• Get down: If you can’t get inside, squat low to the ground on the balls of your feet, with your hands on your knees and head tucked in. This makes you the smallest target possible and can help guard against being struck by lightning
• Avoid water: If you’re on the water, get to the shore and away from wide, open beaches as quickly as possible
• Avoid trees: Don’t shelter under tall or isolated trees
• Avoid open spaces: Get out of wide, open spaces and away from exposed hilltops immediately

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