Investigators say lightning is to blame for a house fire in Pulaski County as West Pulaski Fire Dept responded as mutual aid to a Crystal Fire Department structure fire around 10 p.m. in the 3000 block of Jack Mann Road, just east of the WPFD fire district. The fire started during severe weather in which local meteorologists were estimating 100-200 lightning strikes per minute in the central Arkansas area.
Quick Facts about Arkansas Lightning:
- Arkansas is #5 on the The Weather Channel’s list of states with most lightning strikes http://www.weather.com/safety/thunderstorms/top-5-lightning-prone-states-20120509?pageno=2
- 15.2 Strikes Per Square Mile
- 810,444 strikes per year with an average of 15.2 per square mile.
- No reported lightning fatalities in 2012.
- 123 fatalities from 1959-2011, which is the 11th most in the nation.
- Meteorological factors: Frontal systems during the spring, fall and winter can produce thunderstorms at times. Pop-up afternoon thunderstorms in the summer.