Is central Florida the lightning capital of the US/world? (Was in a scary situation at Disney last week)... (Oviedo: house, dangerous)

[JustinsMama]

We were at the Beach Club at Beaches and Cream by the pool when I noticed clouds getting dark off in the distance. Thought we had plenty of time to get back to the Swan Resort (by foot) where we were staying.

About halfway over the bridge that gets you from the Swan/Dolphin area to the Boardwalk/Beach Club area the wind picks up and lightning starts flashing like crazy everywhere (what's really bad is the lifeguards didn't start telling everyone to get out of the pool until after we had started back to the Swan so they probably only had like a minute warning......I guess you can't always trust the lifeguards).

Needless to say if you know that bridge and you're in the middle of it you can really either go only back to where you came from or press on to get to either the Boardwalk area (where nothing was really open to go into) or the Swan. I basically grabbed my 7 year olds hand and told him to run while trying to keep us crouched down the whole time). He of course wanted to make a commentary about everything he saw on the way - tree limbs falling, some guy running and slipping, etc...I basically had to tell him to shut up and keep running. We made it to the Swan right as the sky opened and by the time we got up to our room, it looked like a hurricane was going on outside. Whew...it was pretty frightening...I was thinking I don't want my son and I going out this way at Disney.

So moral of the story...take the weather there (or anywhere) seriously and keep an eye out just in case...(don't get stuck in tourist la-la land like I must have been).

[seain dublin]

Yes, it is the lightning capital of North America. And it is very dangerous.

It is very frequent in the summer here. Nothing like going to the supermarket when it is sunny out and a storm starts and you have a cartload of groceries and you can't go out in the parking lot, unless you want a new perm....LOL.

[annerk]

It's not that difficult to judge how fast the storm is moving and then either just stay put or hustle to where you are going before it gets bad out.

[Practice]

We get thunderstorms basically every day in the summer time. They usually last less than an hour.

I'm not sure why the lifeguards didn't pull people from the water right away; They might have some kind of rule according to having to hear thunder or see lightning before making the call, because if you just pulled people out every time it looked like it would rain, they'd always be closed. Also as you can imagine, they're going to get flack no matter what call is made, and when.

I actually really enjoy the thunderstorms down here, especially at night. To me there's something very soothing about the rhythmic sound of the rain pounding down, and the occasional sound of rumbling thunder reminds me of something very real in this land of artificial man-made creations.

[JustinsMama]

Yeah and I can just see me NOT pulling out the umbrella for fear of it attracting the nearest bolt of lightning to it.

[goofykid]

The entire state is the lightining capital of the world.

[JustinsMama]

Practice...I enjoy a good thunderstorm to every now and then...just from the safety and comfort of a solid indoor structure

[OrlandoRE_Miracle]

Yes, it's the lightning capital. You get used to it pretty quickly. Sometimes things do happen -- a house was hit in Oviedo last week and burned down. But generally you have plenty of time to get indoors.

[Wilshire81182]

I heard that there is only one place in the world that there is more lightning than Central Florida and that is in Central Africa. I can find the reference, but it was in a book I read before I moved here.

[mongoslade223]

Basically, when the wind starts to pick up and the sky starts to get cloudy during the summer, it's time to find some shelter. During the summer, expect there to be lightning during every storm. I have seen people doing the craziest things during those storms ( like continuing to do yard work and jetskiing)