Florida is once again the lightning capital of the United States in 2024, according to environmental technology company AEM.
In AEM’s latest lightning report, the company found that Florida saw the most flash density, with up to 76 lightning strikes witnessed per square mile.
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And in all, the top states on the report were as follows:
| Rank | State | Most Lightning Strikes per Square Mile |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | FL | 76 |
| 2 | LA | 70 |
| 3 (Tie) | OK | 69 |
| 3 (Tie) | KS | 69 |
| 5 | MO | 50 |
| 6 (Tie) | TX | 48 |
| 6 (Tie) | IL | 48 |
| 8 | IA | 47 |
| 9 (Tie) | AR | 44 |
| 9 (Tie) | NE | 44 |
Last year, another report by Finland-based Vaisala found that the Four Corners was the area with the greatest lightning density in the state, located near the borders of Lake, Orange, Osceola and Polk counties.
Florida’s high propensity for lightning is primarily because the state is a large, warm landmass, surrounded by water. This makes it much easier for storms to develop than other parts of the country.
“Florida is surrounded by water on three sides, so that makes for a pretty unique weather pattern during our wet season,” News 6 meteorologist Julie Broughton explained. “Typically from May until October, we see daily thunderstorms driven by our east and west coast sea breezes. And that can result in hundreds of lightning strikes in one afternoon.”
Broughton said it’s important to remember that there is no safe place outdoors when lightning is near. And that claim was borne out in 2024.
According to the National Weather Service, last year saw a dozen people die nationwide — five of whom were in Florida — by lightning, either directly or indirectly. The Florida fatalities were as follows:
| Date | City | Age/Sex | Activity at Time of Strike |
|---|---|---|---|
| March 3 | Tallahassee | 73/M | Walking in a park field |
| June 30 | Davie | 53/M | Running beneath a tree at the park |
| July 25 | St. Petersburg | 16/F | Under a tree |
| Aug. 31 | Naples | 24/M | At the beach |
| Sept. 18 | Pembroke Pines | 16/M | Riding his bike in a local neighborhood |
However, prior years have seen even higher body counts, with many cases taking place at parks, bodies of water, or outside a household.
“Beaches and parks are popular places to gather during the summer months, when we are most likely to see daily thunderstorms,” Broughton added. “And with a warm, moist environment, storms can move in quickly, catching people off guard. That’s why it’s so important to monitor the radar with a tool like our Pinpoint Weather App.”
Lightning strikes can travel up to 10 miles. Just because you don’t see lightning, doesn’t mean you are safe. So even if you don’t consider yourself to be in a lightning risk area, when thunder roars, go indoors.