Thunderstorm and lightning safety in the UK

British thunderstorms are less frequent than continental ones, which is exactly why people underestimate them. Lightning injures people in the UK every year - usually people who were "nearly home anyway". Here's the practical version of staying safe, without the folklore.

Published 13 July 2026 · WeatherZ Guides · For live warnings always check the Met Office

The one rule that matters

If you can hear thunder, you are close enough to be struck. Lightning can strike ten miles or more from the rain core - outside the storm, in dry air, under blue sky at your position. "It's not raining yet" is not a safety margin.

The 30/30 rule

• 30 seconds: count the gap between a flash and its thunder. Thirty seconds or less (roughly six miles) means the storm is close enough to be dangerous - get to proper shelter.
• 30 minutes: stay sheltered until 30 minutes after the last thunder you hear. A large proportion of strikes happen on a storm's trailing edge, when people re-emerge too early.

Where to shelter

Good: a substantial building with wiring and plumbing (they safely route a strike to earth), or a hard-topped metal vehicle with the windows shut - it's the metal shell that protects you, not the tyres.

Bad: trees (a classic and deadly choice - side-flash from a struck trunk), open ground where you're the tallest object, water (swimming, paddling, fishing), golf courses, hilltops and ridgelines, small open shelters like bus stops and bandstands, tents, and anything metal you're holding - golf clubs, umbrellas, carbon fishing rods.

Indoors during a storm

A direct strike on a house energises its wiring and plumbing for a moment. During an intense overhead storm, avoid baths and showers, don't handle plugged-in appliances, and stay off corded devices. Everything wireless is fine.

Caught in the open with no shelter

Keep moving briskly towards real shelter - crouching in a field has been dropped from official advice as it barely reduces risk. Get off high ground, spread out if you're in a group, and stay away from isolated tall objects.

Myths that need to die

• "Lightning never strikes the same place twice." Tall structures are struck repeatedly - that's why they carry conductors.
• "Rubber soles / rubber tyres protect you." A strike that has crossed miles of air is not stopped by a centimetre of rubber. Cars protect because of their metal shell.
• "Metal attracts lightning." Height, isolation and shape decide strike points. Metal doesn't summon lightning - but holding a conductor raises the harm if you're struck.
• "Phones are dangerous in a storm." A mobile phone poses no meaningful risk. Corded devices connected to the mains or a landline are the issue.

Photographing storms without becoming part of one

Storm photography is one of the best parts of the WeatherZ community - done from the right place. Shoot distant storms, from inside a building or vehicle where possible; use a tripod by a window or a long exposure from shelter rather than standing exposed; and apply the 30/30 rule to yourself, not just your subjects. No photograph is worth being the tallest object in a field holding a metal tripod. When the platform launches, our reporting guide covers how to share what you capture.

After a strike

People struck by lightning carry no electrical charge and are safe to help immediately. Call 999, start CPR if they're not breathing - cardiac arrest is the main cause of lightning deaths and is survivable with fast intervention.