Struck by Lightning!

Life is never dull around here!

We experienced a sudden cloudburst yesterday. I saw a flash of lightning that was followed immediately by a loud clap of thunder. The roof rattled. The ground shook under us. A worried Medha ran to the basement - it reminded her of the severe thunderstorm and tornado warnings when we lived in Chicagoland. There was no time to even begin counting to figure out how far away it was. It had to have been overhead. We found out this morning that it was.

Lightning from that cloudburst struck a tree right across from Medha's bus stop. Less than 5 minutes from our home.



Wood has been flung everywhere. As far as 300 yards away. On the roofs. The fence has been ripped apart. The trail is littered. The houses across from the trail have fragments. And, we have one, too! Not because it was flung into our yard but because it was carried home as a souvenir! Life in Colorado is never dull! It's nature, nature, nature - in your face!

11 comments:

Meena Kandlakuti said...

manisha,

I think god is great...luck has its own place.

Anonymous said...

Hi Manisha -- I remember all the talk about lightning when I was planning the trip to Colorado. Guidebooks said it's the number one natural hazard there. Glad you were all safe under cover.

Stuffed squash looked great - you're very patient to do that :)

Nabeela said...

oh wow....you guys do have the front seat as far as nature is concerned. I'm glad you guys were unharmed

Sree said...

O H - M Y - G O D!

Anonymous said...

Oh god.. day by day I am getting scared about your place Manisha. We had some thunders(like small bomb sounds) few days back in midnight. But don't know if it struct anywhere (did I say, all this time my hubby was sound sleep. He didn't even beleive me when I told him about the thunders next day :D).

Anonymous said...

I think this blogger is playing strange on me...I leave comments and then check back to see they are gone....anyway...

I am getting very very scared of your place by reading your posts. Snakes, mountain lions, lightening...oh god..how do u live there?
BTW..we also experienced frightening thunder a few days back. That too in the middle of the night, felt like entire apartment would fall on my head :(. Its so scary.

Anonymous said...

Meena, I agree with you. Homes have been struck and burnt down by lightning in old Louisville. The homeowner whose yard this tree was in and their immediate neighbors were very very lucky. The tree must have just exploded!

Linda, that's right. According to the Colorado Division of Emergency Management, lightning is the #1 natural hazard in Colorado. We also read that horses are most hit by lightning because they are out on the ranches in vast open spaces. You can't take nature for granted. Thank you so much for your concern! As for the stuffed squash - I will make it again next year. :-D

Nabeela, it certainly seems that way, doesn't it? And, thank you!

Sree, that's all I was saying when I was looking at the scene around me at the bus stop. My friend told me about another tree a couple of miles away on a farm that has been hit by lightning. She said it was bent over. At least this cottonwood is still standing but I think it will need to be chopped down. I wonder if it will make good firewood for winter.

Shilpa, raw nature is very powerful and sometimes we need incidents like this to remind us that we are very 'small' in comparison to the power of natural elements. How do we live here? It's bee-yootiful! Truly it is! Visit Colorado and you will know what I am talking about!

FH said...

Manisha!!I am glad you are all safe and sound!! You can fix things always; with our families intact, we can deal with anything!! :D Take care!!
It rained like crazy here too but not much damage!!

Anonymous said...

Scarrrry!! hmmmm, don't know about moving to Colorado anymore :)

Anonymous said...

Asha, apparently that's quite the norm here in CO but for the sake of Caitlyn, Lulu & Tony we'll pretend that it just never happened!

CLT, I know which one of you has a great excuse now. But remember the mountains?! A house with a view? Wonderful weather? No sticky humidity? Me? :-D

Anonymous said...

Ms.Manisha
I was reading the stuff on your website, God Bless You & your Family..Thank God the lighting was a little away..
I had a similar experience, lightning struck a transformer which inturn struck me..well..alive and kicking but I am treated for AvascularNicrosis and blood supply problems.
God Bless Everybody
-Srikanth