Man fatally struck by lightning at golf course
By
Rina Torchinsky, AccuWeather staff writer
Updated Jul 19, 2021 6:09 PM EST
Adam Del Rosso got the chance to interview John Jensenius, the creator of Lightning Safety Awareness Week, to learn about the week itself and how to stay safe.
A 71-year-old golfer was struck and killed by lightning Friday while he was attempting to seek shelter in Taylor, Pennsylvania, marking the third lightning fatality documented in the United States this year.
Joseph Slivinski of Blakely, Pennsylvania, was struck at the Pine Hills Golf Course, according to local news outlet WNEP. Since 2006, there have been 12 golf-related lightning fatalities in the nation, including two this year, according to John Jensenius, a lightning safety specialist at the National Lightning Safety Council.
Data from the past decade shows that the U.S. averages 13 lightning fatalities through July 18, according to Jensenius. Last year, there were 17 total lighting deaths reported. In 2018 and 2019, there were 21 deaths reported each year.
“Although we don't like to see any lightning deaths, we are pleased that the numbers so far this year are extremely low,” Jensenius wrote in an email.
The latest incident is the first fatality in July. The first lightning fatality of the year was that of a 70-year-old male, Michael Ward, under a tree on a golf course in Burlington County, New Jersey, according to data from National Lightning Safety Council. The second reported fatality was a 15-year-old girl, Maiah Mitchell, in the water on Tybee Island, Georgia.
Lightning streaks across the sky. (Getty Images)
Jensenius noted that the nation is only about halfway through the lightning season, so there is a possibility that there could be a considerable number of lightning fatalities before the end of the year. The lightning safety specialist attributed the downward trend to “better understanding and public awareness of the dangers of lightning.”
May and June are the months when fatalities due to lightning strikes typically ramp up nationally. Although there are many factors that affect lightning deaths, the weather this year may be a factor in the lower numbers witnessed so far.
Chris Vagasky, meteorologist for Vaisala, a technology company that detects lightning strikes around the globe, explained in an email that lightning counts were about 17% below average in the U.S. between May 15 and June 30.
Vagasky said that over 80 million lightning events were detected by Vaisala in the U.S. so far this year through June 30, which is below average and below data from five of the last six years during the same time frame.
No one was killed by lightning in the country through the end of May, which had not happened in the last 15 years.
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The latest reported fatality also marks the first lightning death in Pennsylvania since June 13, 2019 when two teens were hit while fishing in Westmoreland County. The Keystone State has seen a total of 12 lightning fatalities since 2006.
Another lightning strike was reported Saturday afternoon in a state long considered the lightning capital of the U.S. A 17-year-old is in critical condition after being struck by lightning at Residents’ Beach on Marco Island in southwestern Florida, according to local station ABC7. The teen’s father performed CPR on the scene, according to officers in the Marco Island Police Department.
Correction: This story previously stated that the lightning strike that killed a 71-year-old man occurred in Taylor County, Pennsylvania. The incident happened in Taylor, Pennsylvania, which is located in Lackawanna County.
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News / Weather News
Man fatally struck by lightning at golf course
By Rina Torchinsky, AccuWeather staff writer
Updated Jul 19, 2021 6:09 PM EST
Adam Del Rosso got the chance to interview John Jensenius, the creator of Lightning Safety Awareness Week, to learn about the week itself and how to stay safe.
A 71-year-old golfer was struck and killed by lightning Friday while he was attempting to seek shelter in Taylor, Pennsylvania, marking the third lightning fatality documented in the United States this year.
Joseph Slivinski of Blakely, Pennsylvania, was struck at the Pine Hills Golf Course, according to local news outlet WNEP. Since 2006, there have been 12 golf-related lightning fatalities in the nation, including two this year, according to John Jensenius, a lightning safety specialist at the National Lightning Safety Council.
Data from the past decade shows that the U.S. averages 13 lightning fatalities through July 18, according to Jensenius. Last year, there were 17 total lighting deaths reported. In 2018 and 2019, there were 21 deaths reported each year.
“Although we don't like to see any lightning deaths, we are pleased that the numbers so far this year are extremely low,” Jensenius wrote in an email.
The latest incident is the first fatality in July. The first lightning fatality of the year was that of a 70-year-old male, Michael Ward, under a tree on a golf course in Burlington County, New Jersey, according to data from National Lightning Safety Council. The second reported fatality was a 15-year-old girl, Maiah Mitchell, in the water on Tybee Island, Georgia.
Lightning streaks across the sky. (Getty Images)
Jensenius noted that the nation is only about halfway through the lightning season, so there is a possibility that there could be a considerable number of lightning fatalities before the end of the year. The lightning safety specialist attributed the downward trend to “better understanding and public awareness of the dangers of lightning.”
May and June are the months when fatalities due to lightning strikes typically ramp up nationally. Although there are many factors that affect lightning deaths, the weather this year may be a factor in the lower numbers witnessed so far.
Chris Vagasky, meteorologist for Vaisala, a technology company that detects lightning strikes around the globe, explained in an email that lightning counts were about 17% below average in the U.S. between May 15 and June 30.
Vagasky said that over 80 million lightning events were detected by Vaisala in the U.S. so far this year through June 30, which is below average and below data from five of the last six years during the same time frame.
No one was killed by lightning in the country through the end of May, which had not happened in the last 15 years.
CLICK HERE FOR THE FREE ACCUWEATHER APP
The latest reported fatality also marks the first lightning death in Pennsylvania since June 13, 2019 when two teens were hit while fishing in Westmoreland County. The Keystone State has seen a total of 12 lightning fatalities since 2006.
Another lightning strike was reported Saturday afternoon in a state long considered the lightning capital of the U.S. A 17-year-old is in critical condition after being struck by lightning at Residents’ Beach on Marco Island in southwestern Florida, according to local station ABC7. The teen’s father performed CPR on the scene, according to officers in the Marco Island Police Department.
Correction: This story previously stated that the lightning strike that killed a 71-year-old man occurred in Taylor County, Pennsylvania. The incident happened in Taylor, Pennsylvania, which is located in Lackawanna County.
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