How Lightning Can Cause Significant Storm Damage to Beacon Businesses | SERVPRO® of Western Dutchess County

12/22/2020 (Permalink)

Businesses can suffer serious damages if stuck by lightning, be knowledgeable and prepared!

Severe thunderstorms can be dangerous for a multitude of reasons, but one of the most dangerous considerations of all is lightning damage. Extremely hot and incredibly quick, a lightning strike can cause significant damage in an instant to anything it lands on—which could very well be a business or a home.

Lightning occurs when there is a spark of electricity, which can be between two clouds, in the air or between the clouds in the ground. The significant heat of lightning is also what causes thunder, so every thunderstorm contains the potential for lightning to strike as well.

Lightning can also travel for up to 25 miles away from the sound of thunder, making it a phenomenon that impacts quite a broad area. Below, we will look at how lightning can damage your business so you know what to be aware of the next time severe weather comes through.

How Lightning Damages Businesses

Through Starting a Fire:

The risk of starting a fire is the biggest danger that a lightning strike poses. Lightning can reach up to 50,000 degrees Fahrenheit, giving it the potential to immediately cause a fire if it strikes flammable building materials or nearby trees and possibly attached or adjoining buildings or living spaces. Lightning can also burn up wires as it travels through the structure, creating the potential for an electrical fire within the walls, either immediately or at a later date. If your business has been struck by lightning, it is wise to have professional commercial electrician check for damage within the walls.

Through Power Surges:

As lightning travels through the wiring, it can overload the circuits and cause energy to be shot to anything that is plugged into a wall outlet—this is called a power surge. This can ruin electronics including computers, security systems, fire alarms, elevator functions, lighting and health/safety systems and even send sparks flying, posing another type of fire hazard altogether.

Through Shock Wave Damage:

The same force that causes thunder to sound in the clouds can occur on the ground, where it is called a shock wave. This powerful force can lead to shattered glass, foundational cracks and explosions of brick or cinder blocks if lightning strikes the building or even nearby.

If your business has been damaged by severe weather, SERVPRO of Western Dutchess County has the experience and equipment to handle any size commercial damage. Call us at any hour for help with severe weather restoration at your business.