Lightning In a Warming World
The age-old maxim says that lightning never strikes twice in the same place. Florida would beg to disagree. The state is the lightning capital of the United States as measured in deaths by lightning, with four fatalities in 2025, all men enjoying the outdoors. Now, the state faces a new uncertainty: Is climate change making lightning worse?
By Bea Anhuci
Birth of a Bolt
What is lightning, anyway? What triggers it and how strong is it? The science, wonder–and danger–of lightning, explained. Plus, test your knowledge of lightning myths vs. facts.
By Marta Zherukha
State of Strikes
Lightning is an essential part of nature—balancing Earth’s electrical charge by transferring negative energy back to the ground. But it can also be fatal. That’s especially true in Florida, where thunderstorms can roll in quickly while people are out on the water, golf course or woods.
By Claudia Schmidt and Emma Twombly
What Are the Odds?
Former Florida meteorologist Brad Sussman survived a lightning strike on his moving day from the Sunshine State. “I was trying to figure out if getting struck by lightning on my last day of living in Florida was the good Lord trying to tell me: you shouldn’t be leaving Florida — or you should never come back,” he said. Floridians face higher odds of being struck. We calculated them with the help of the National Lightning Safety Council.
By Kaitlyn Tarakji
The Day the Sky Fell on the Knudsens
A lightning strike 21 years ago on their daughter’s 1st birthday changed the lives of a ranching family–and reveals the special risks faced by those who make their living working outdoors.
By Katie Shealy
Making Floridians Safer
The death of 12-year-old Langston Rodriguez-Sane following a storm on Orlando’s Lake Fairview during youth rowing practice reveals gaps in Florida lightning-safety policies. How can Florida do more to protect its most vulnerable residents, workers and visitors from harm?
By Isabela Reinoso
About the Project
Students in Environmental Journalism class at the UF College of Journalism and Communications spent their semester reporting on the science, risks and human stories of lightning across Florida, the lightning capital of the United States.
Read More
Copyright 2025 WUFT 89.1
