KELLY FARRELL / Staff

Daniel Jerry, 85 shows the damage done by a bolt of lightning that struck his property, 1589 Barfield Court, Wednesday evening. The one-foot wide and four-foot high concrete wall near the front of his home was struck by lightning and the electric current traveled around the front of the home, through a fence and into his garage causing 60-pound boulders of concrete to fly as far as 50 feet. Preliminary estimates of the damage to Jerry's electrical system, fence, concrete wall and exterior lighting is about $75,000.

KELLY FARRELL / Staff

Daniel Jerry, 85 shows a hole in the ground caused by lightning which struck his home on Barfield Court Wednesday evening. Jerry said Islanders should be aware of the amount of damage one bolt of lightning can cause and should consider installing a lightning rod, which he now plans to install.

STORY TOOLS

• E-mail story
• iPod friendly
• Printer friendly

Tell us about it

• What would you add to this story? Tell us what we missed.
• Do you have photos from this event? Documents we need to see? Share with us.
• Upload photos & videos
• More ways to get your stuff online and in the paper.

More Local News

• Business Spotlight: Rollsecure Shutters
• Fix investment: new car sales slump boosts repair shops' business
• Pet Talk: Cat food for thought

Share and Enjoy [?]

MARCO ISLAND — Daniel Jerry, 85 was sitting on the sofa watching TV in his living room while heavy thunder and lightning rumbled and cracked outside his Marco Island home last week.

“I was counting one, 1,000, two, 1,000, three ... If you start counting less than five seconds between lightning strikes the next one hits your house ... I started at 16 seconds, then I got to five. I stood up to tell my wife and before I got to here,” he says, as he stands in his hallway halfway between his wife’s room and the living room, “That was it. I thought ‘this is a big one.’ Kaboom, crash and the lights went out,” Jerry said.

How did he learn the counting trick? “I’m an engineer,” he answered.

Jerry walked around his Barfield Court home inspecting the damage.

“It hit the five-foot tall concrete wall and tore it to pieces. It’s 12 -inches thick. There were 60 to 70-pound chunks of concrete. It blew from the bottom of the driveway all the way to neighbor’s yard,” he said of the barrier surrounding the front of his home.

No one was injured and the lightning strike did not ignite a fire, but Jerry knew it could easily have turned out differently. Even though he said he felt lucky, the damage to electronics, the garage, front doors, landscaping and concrete wall will cost him about $75,000 as he works with multiple contractors to repair the damage.

It appeared the lightning struck one of two large lamps at the bottom of his driveway with the current traveling through the wires from the two lamps, through more than 10 feet of the length of the concrete wall and then stopping somewhere in or near the garage.

The two large glass lamps exploded, concrete blew out, a hole more than a foot in diameter was left in the yard and it appeared the current finally weakened just before entering the home through the garage.

As he inspected gouges in his front door where concrete from the wall had flown about 40 feet, Jerry said he was amazed by the power.

The lightning bolt caused an estimated $50,000 in damage to the home’s Lytetouch electronic system, a computerized system that allows electric switches to be rerouted to operate any light or electronic device on the property.

“I just want people to realize lightning is a danger on Marco Island,” Jerry said, adding that he otherwise wished to avoid bringing any attention to himself.

As summer has come to an end and fall begins, the season of lightning will begin to dwindle in Florida.

Florida is often referred to as the lightning capital of the U.S. with more average strikes per square mile, about 25, and more deaths than any other state.

The flash of light from lightning heats the air around it to nearly 50,000 degrees Fahrenheit, which is hotter than the surface of the sun and a bolt can carry up to 100 million volts of electricity. The National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration reported 11 deaths in Florida due to lightning in 2007.

The National Weather Service’s counting system is similar to the system Jerry used. Called the 30/30 rule, the National Weather Service recommends counting the seconds between when lightning is seen and thunder is heard. If the time span is 30 seconds or less, they recommend seeking shelter until 30 minutes after the last boom of thunder.

When you count the number of seconds in the flash to bang you divide the number by five and that’s how many miles away the lightning is.

Jerry said the experience has him considering the idea of purchasing a lightning protection system for his home.

While nothing can stop lightning from striking your home, there are things a homeowner can do to minimize the odds of a strike and minimize the damage caused should a bolt make contact with your home.

Lightning Protection Systems based in Naples provides lightning rod systems and surge protection for electronics.

“Lightning rods will not attract a bolt of lightning toward your home nor repel it away. What it does is offer a path for the current to be dispelled into the ground,” said Lance Fleming, president of Lightning Protection Systems, Inc.

The system lessens the odds of being struck by lightning by providing constant static discharge and if the house is struck, it weakens the current faster dispelling the current into the ground.

Fleming said the average lightning rod system costs about $2,500. For a very large property the cost could be in excess of $6,000 depending on the roof line.

Lightning protection companies, as well as electric companies, also provide surge protection systems which will provide protection for large appliances and electronics. Lee County Electric Cooperative provides surge protection at the meter and inside at the outlets. LCEC’s products, Surge Sense, can be leased for $5.95 per month with a $45 dollar set up fee or purchased for about $300.

The National Weather Service provides tips for staying safe during a lightning storm.

– If shelter cannot be sought, crouch down on the balls of your feet leaving the smallest possible area of your body touching the ground.

– Rubber tires do not insulate you from lightning. The vehicle’s metal shell conducts lightning around and away from you. For this reason convertibles with the top up or down do not provide protection.

– Stay clear of tall trees, metal fences and water.

– Cordless phones and cell phones may be used. Do not use corded phones.

– Stay clear of concrete and windows

– Unplug electronics