A lightning strike is a massive, sudden electrical discharge that can carry up to a billion volts of electricity and generate extreme heat. This overwhelming power creates an instantaneous traumatic event. Surprisingly, most individuals struck by lightning survive the initial impact, with a survival rate of around 90%. The experience profoundly disrupts the body’s electrical and mechanical systems.
The Instantaneous Event
The common query about the experience of being struck often focuses on the direct sensation, which is usually a non-event for the conscious mind. This is due to the immense speed of the electrical current flow, which lasts only 10 to 100 milliseconds. In comparison, the body’s internal nerve signals travel much slower. The electrical charge surges through the body before the nervous system can fully process the event as pain.
Survivors who retain memory of the event often describe an immediate, overwhelming jolt, like a powerful blast of energy coursing through them. This is compounded by the sensory overload from the environment: the strike produces a blinding flash of light and a deafening shockwave as the surrounding air is superheated and rapidly expands. This explosive force can physically throw a person several feet or cause them to be violently knocked to the ground.
Some individuals report a sensation of time slowing down or being “frozen” during the millisecond of contact, an effect likely related to the immediate disruption of the central nervous system. Since the electrical impulse travels so quickly, the nervous system is overwhelmed, often resulting in immediate loss of consciousness or amnesia for the event. The initial feeling is less about a sustained burn and more about a catastrophic, immediate sensory and mechanical disruption.
Acute Physical Injuries
The physical reality of a lightning strike produces profound and life-threatening medical consequences. The massive electrical current instantly interferes with the heart’s natural pacemaker. This often results in asystole or ventricular fibrillation, which is the primary cause of immediate death in victims.
The immense heat generated by the strike, which can exceed 50,000 degrees Fahrenheit, typically causes superficial injuries rather than deep burns. Because the strike’s duration is brief, the current often “flashes over” the skin. This creates unique, temporary, fern-like patterns called Lichtenberg figures, which trace the path the current took over the body’s surface.
The neurological system is also immediately affected, leading to conditions such as keraunoparalysis. This temporary paralysis causes weakness, pallor, and a lack of pulse in the extremities, most often the legs. Keraunoparalysis is thought to be caused by a temporary spasm of blood vessels and usually resolves within a few hours. Beyond the electrical effects, the concussive shockwave from the strike can cause mechanical trauma, including ruptured eardrums and internal injuries.
Lasting Health Impacts
For survivors, the nervous system is the primary target of lightning injury, leading to chronic health management issues. Chronic pain, specifically neuropathic pain, is a persistent issue stemming from lasting damage to the peripheral nerves. This nerve injury can cause constant tingling, numbness, and severe muscle or joint pain that persists for years.
Survivors frequently experience a range of cognitive and psychological challenges that resemble post-concussion syndrome. These effects include difficulties with concentration, memory deficits, and a noticeable slowing of reaction time. Psychological symptoms are also common, with many individuals developing Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), anxiety, depression, and significant personality changes.
Sensory impairments are another common residual effect of the strike’s energy and concussive force. Chronic hearing loss and tinnitus are often reported due to the thunder’s intense shockwave or direct electrical injury to the auditory system. Furthermore, eye injuries, such as the development of cataracts, may manifest days or weeks after the initial incident.