Moments after this photo was taken, Sean and Michael McQuilken were struck by lightning. Both boys survived.
If you are ever outside and suddenly your hair starts to randomly stand up like this, GET YOURSELF AS LOW TO THE GROUND AS POSSIBLE, MOVE TOWARDS SHELTER OR A LOW AREA, and tell anyone nearby to do the same.
Lightning isn’t a projectile that “falls” from the sky, it’s actually a transfer of electricity from the positively charged ground to the negatively charged clouds.
The ground has a lot of spare electrons and the clouds don’t have enough, so nature wants to equalize the imbalance. Unfortunately, air is a really poor conductor of electricity, so the electrons can’t flow across it until they build up such an enormous charge as to overcome that resistance.
Lightning always tries to find the path of least resistance so that it can complete the transfer as soon as possible. Since air is such a poor conductor, many things are easier for electricity to flow through, including buildings, cell towers, trees, and YOU.
If your hair stands up like this out in the open, it means that you are standing on a part of the ground where static electricity is gathering, looking for a way to get into the sky. And since you conduct electricity better than the air around you, YOU ARE IN DANGER OF BECOMING PART OF A LIGHTNING STRIKE.
Immediately crouch or lie down and crawl to shelter or a low area, like a ditch. If you are in a flat area with nothing nearby, lie flat on the ground. The lightning is going to take the easiest path into the air, and you do NOT want to let it use you like a ladder.
