Relentless Thunderstorm Last Night in Central PA

What could only be described as a "relentless" thunderstorm occurred last night here in State College, Pennsylvania, home of AccuWeather HQ [Google Map], as a result of a frontal system coming through. In fact, a long line of storms traversed the state, dropping nearly 20,000 lightning strikes in the general area, according to AccuWeather.com LightningPlus.

| SHORT RADAR LOOP (GIF) | LONG RADAR LOOP (2 MB AVI)

While I didn't get up and watch the storm, I was awakened by it, and recall nearly constant lightning between 5 and 6 am, then another round around 7. Here in the Northeast, we are not accustomed to morning thunderstorms, especially this late in the season. The local paper says 600-some people lost power. As always, Local storm chaser Ron "R-Factor" Shawley was out in the elements and brought us a number of lightning pics.