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00:00 When a thunderstorm rolls in, it's an exhilarating display of nature.
00:06 Dark and ominous clouds, teeming rain, and howling winds.
00:11 But there's one aspect that makes the entire thing just that little bit more spectacular
00:17 or terrifying, depending on how you feel about it.
00:21 The flash of lightning.
00:24 A burst of magnificent power, sent as if from heaven itself.
00:30 But no matter how God-driven it might seem, there's also the potential for some serious
00:35 destruction.
00:37 This is Unveiled, and today we're answering the extraordinary question, "What actually
00:44 happens if you get struck by lightning?"
01:01 Famously the chances are low that you ever actually will get struck by lightning at all.
01:09 Chances vary, but we're talking between 1 in 300,000 and 1 in 1 million or more that
01:16 it would happen to you during any one year.
01:21 This blink-and-you'll-miss-it phenomenon is so rare in fact, that it's almost universally
01:27 used as the measuring stick that almost every other rare thing possible is held up against.
01:34 Will I win the lottery this week?
01:36 I'm more likely to get struck by lightning.
01:39 Or so the saying goes.
01:41 Nevertheless, we still aren't dealing with impossibilities here.
01:45 Many people, thousands of people even, have been struck by lightning before.
01:51 And perhaps surprisingly, most do survive.
01:56 The majority of statistics calculate that while 1 in 10 events do kill those that are
02:02 hit, 9 in 10 are left alive, although with effects and injuries of varying severity.
02:09 In all cases, what the body goes through is extremely tough.
02:15 Often it's a life-changing experience, triggering disabilities and conditions that remain forever.
02:22 Broadly, the impact can be split into two, the physical and the mental.
02:29 And physically speaking, there are two main areas of concern, the burns and the current.
02:37 The burns are pretty self-explanatory, but they can be pretty horrific all the same.
02:42 On average, there are around 1 billion joules of energy in any one bolt of lightning.
02:50 Estimates reckon at around 30 million volts.
02:53 During the instant in which it hits, it can carry temperatures that are hotter than those
02:58 on the surface of the sun.
03:01 Clearly, the human body is not built to withstand even close to that.
03:06 And so, in some cases, although rare, a lightning strike could literally set you on fire.
03:15 Those instances are usually more dependent on the surrounding conditions, however.
03:19 If, say, conductive materials combine to encase you within a hellish ball of spreading flame.
03:27 Here, in the best-case scenario, if you remain conscious enough, you'd find somewhere to
03:33 escape to as quickly as you can.
03:35 In the worst case, it's a death not unlike being tossed into a volcano.
03:42 As more people survive lightning strikes than succumb to them, however, it's not as though
03:46 all events are quite so extreme.
03:50 In fact, no one event is the same as another, as so many depends on the specific circumstances,
03:58 including, again, the surrounding environment, but also what the person is wearing, how exactly
04:05 the electricity passes through them, and what happens immediately afterwards.
04:11 More often than not, it isn't straight-up fire and explosions.
04:16 There just isn't enough time for that, with the electricity passing through in milliseconds.
04:22 In some cases, it can even be difficult to recognize that a person has been struck by
04:27 lightning at all.
04:29 But in all cases, identifying what happened is key, in the short and long term.
04:37 In general, if you want to live and recover, you need to find help fast.
04:43 But that's incredibly difficult to do if, say, your own skin is literally blistering
04:49 away, or if you're out cold and actually completely unaware of what's just happened
04:54 to you, or if the experience has understandably left you dazed and unsure.
05:00 Indeed, when the worst does happen, and a victim does die, it's sometimes in part because
05:07 they're struck by lightning in an isolated location, perhaps across a wide-open rural
05:13 and sparsely populated landscape.
05:16 Under those conditions, they often just can't get to where they need to be.
05:22 Upon finding help, or upon being found, however, you better hope that whoever it is you've
05:27 crossed paths with knows their stuff.
05:31 First off, and even without immediately obvious burns, there could be telltale signs all over
05:37 your body.
05:39 Specified "lightning burns" can set in within a few minutes or, more commonly, a
05:44 few hours.
05:46 These are a spreading, almost network of thin red lines branching across the skin.
05:53 What they actually reveal are the burst capillaries underneath the skin, ruptured by the lightning
05:59 itself.
06:00 But, more than anything else, they're an iconic, immediately identifiable symptom of
06:06 being struck by lightning.
06:08 Crucially, all official guidelines recommend that it is safe to approach and touch someone
06:14 who has just suffered a lightning strike, even a direct hit.
06:18 The human body does not store electrical charge, so the power of the bolt will have passed
06:24 through.
06:25 If a person is found to be without a pulse, then CPR should be started immediately, according
06:31 to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
06:35 And here we move on to the other key factor as to how a lightning strike plays out, how
06:40 the current within passes through your body.
06:44 All of your major organs are at risk in some way or another, but the most important, in
06:50 terms of living or dying, is the heart.
06:54 Those who get struck by lightning often suffer cardiac arrest as a result.
06:59 Such unexpected power dealt by nature simply isn't something that our hearts are anticipating
07:05 or are built to withstand.
07:07 And even if you don't suffer cardiac arrest straight away, it is vital that you're tested
07:14 as soon as possible.
07:15 Your heart may not have stopped completely, but it's possible, even likely, that your
07:21 body will display tremors, murmurs, and fluctuations, all of which could cause more major issues
07:28 at any moment.
07:30 Understandably, there is significant internal trauma elsewhere too, which can manifest in
07:35 various ways.
07:37 The shockwave of a lightning strike is enough to take out your hearing, usually temporarily,
07:43 sometimes permanently.
07:45 The same wave of energy can affect your bones, joints, and muscles, even long after the
07:50 strike occurs.
07:52 Involuntary twitching isn't only a stereotype as seen in movies.
07:57 There is a chance that your body really will react that way, as it tries to make sense
08:02 of what's happened to it.
08:04 There's pressure on your lungs, on your rib cage, your digestive system, your nervous
08:09 system.
08:10 Blurred vision is another potential knock-on effect, again, typically for a short while
08:15 afterwards, but sometimes for longer or forever.
08:20 Essentially, nothing within your body goes untouched or unscathed.
08:25 The psychological strain is more difficult to pinpoint, despite hundreds of cases now
08:30 contributing to what we know.
08:32 Generally, mood disorders are common in those who have been struck by lightning in the past.
08:38 Some vague confusion is expected, especially at the time or soon afterwards, while mental
08:45 and physical fatigue is also often reported.
08:49 Some version of memory loss is usually cited as well, with many people even left completely
08:55 unable to recall the moment of the strike or the time leading up to it.
09:00 Unsurprisingly, there are some cases of post-traumatic stress disorder, while fears, phobias, and
09:07 anxieties are often heightened way beyond anything experienced before the lightning
09:12 hit.
09:13 How do you think you would react if you were ever struck by lightning?
09:17 How would it make you feel about future storms, about being outside, or about electrical products
09:22 or environments in general?
09:24 Let us know in the comments.
09:26 For now, getting struck by lightning is still an exceptionally rare event, and even if it
09:32 does happen to you, you are much more likely to live than die.
09:38 The data isn't evenly spread.
09:41 Lightning injuries are more common in some countries than others, mostly due to the differing
09:46 weather patterns to begin with.
09:48 But to end on some good news, these kinds of events are decreasing across the board.
09:55 The global population today has a better understanding of how to stay safe in a lightning storm.
10:00 Structures are built to better withstand the dangers, and when there is a hit, we're
10:06 better prepared to react and hopefully save those affected.
10:11 That's what happens when you get struck by lightning.
10:16 What do you think?
10:17 Is there anything we missed?
10:19 Let us know in the comments.
10:21 Check out these other clips from Unveiled, and make sure you subscribe and ring the bell
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