Last year damages caused by lightning strikes cost over 100 million kroner. Over 60 percent of damages occurred in summer, with August traditionally being the worst month.
Since 2015, the damages after lightning strikes have been steadily declining, but last year there was an increase in the amount of damages and cost.
Last year, Norwegian insurance companies had to pay almost 102 million kroner in compensation for fire damages and other damages as a result of short circuits after a lightning strike. The year before, payments of 81.2 million krone were made, according to numbers from Finans Norge.
In 2014, there was an extraordinary amount of damages after lightning strikes. Where in most of it was due to electrical short circuits. Most damages occurred in cases where a lightning strike would lead to fire. Insurance companies had to pay over 567 million in compensation in 2014.
The former Hordaland county had the most damage due to lightning since 1985. They are followed by Rogaland and the former Akershus. Trøms and Finnmark had the least amount of lightning strikes.
In Norway, an average of around 110,000 lightning strikes occur annually. Most lightning strikes happen during the summer months of June, July, and August, but lightning damages also do occur during winter. During summer, lightning strikes usually happen inland , while in winter it is more common at the coast.
Lightning and thunder occur when the air is unstable, i.e. when hot and cold air meet, especially when there is low pressure. Lightning increases when the voltage between an area of positive electricity and an area of negative electricity in the atmosphere becomes so great that a spark is triggered between the two areas.
Lightning can be triggered within one cloud, two different clouds, or between a cloud and the ground.
© NTB Scanpix / #Norway Today
Be the first to comment on "Peak season for lightning, August being the worst"