posted 03-30-2008 08:36 AM ET (US)        

Last season I was caught in a sudden electrical storm right after launching the boat. My first instinct was to lower the VHF antenna that sits about 4' above my head. I did so and headed back to shore.

My question is two fold:

1) Was I being paranoid by lowering my VHF antenna or is it common practice?

2) How many CW members lower their VHF antenna when caught off guard by sudden electrical storms (assuming you can't find shelter)?

I did some searching on this site for similar topics. I couldn't find anything that answered my questions about common or best practices on VHF antenna lowering during electrical storms. I know it is most likely common sense but I'm curious as to other CW member's immediate actions concerning the lightning rod, that is a VHF antenna, during a sudden electrical storm.

posted 03-30-2008 09:36 AM ET (US)            

Stay grounded....

posted 03-30-2008 05:31 PM ET (US)            

Once the VHF antenna is lowered, the helmsman, standing at the center console, is the tallest thing in the boat, and they are grounded (touching the metal steering wheel connected through metal cables to the metal engine that is in the water). Even sitting on the RPS on my Montauk, my head is still about even or a little above the console.

posted 03-30-2008 07:56 PM ET (US)            

http://www.boatsafe.com/nauticalknowhow/lightning.htm

Other wise it will be like my father used to say when we were sailing in lightning, "when your number is up, your number is up".

posted 03-30-2008 09:05 PM ET (US)            

The two schools of thought by the experts is if your going to attract lightning, then you better have the best protection available in the form of electrical bonding and proper discharge devices into the water away from the craft.

The other is to avoid setting yourself up for a strike by keeping any current carrying objects as low to the water as possible, or as jimh suggests get your boat under or next to a structure that will shield you under the 45 degree "cone of protection".

The fact is the percentage of boats that become targets of lightning is very low.

posted 03-31-2008 01:51 PM ET (US)            

About two that afternoon we started to hear the sound of static electricity on the radios. Fifteen minutes later there was a Marine Warning issued for the area we were in, followed by a call from a boater inshore of us saying the sky had turned a bitch black green color. Didn't take us long to ready the boat for a rapid transit back to Shallotte Inlet. We stored all our fishing rods under the gunnels lowered one of our antennas and battened down the hatches for the ride home.

As we passed the five mile range arc from the sea buoy the sky turned the color mentioned above. I went to grab the bimini frame and was met by a snap caused by a static electricity discharge. About two miles later just before all hell broke loose I looked at my wife and saw that her hair was standing on end. That's when I started praying for devine intervention. We carry personal watercraft eye goggles just in case we run into heavy rain so we won't lose our vision.

I was watching three boats running hard for the inlet one of which was to the left of our track and slightly ahead of us when my vision became impaired by a large flash of white/orange light followed by the loudest clap of thunder I've ever heard. Lighting had hit the sea bouy about 50 yards ahead of us. The air was literally sucked out of the atmosphere around us and the concussion from the sound created by the thunder knocked be back into the captains chair. It started to rain so hard that we literally couldn't see over the bow of our Ventura. The wind was blowing in excess of 50 miles a hour so the rain felt like it was removing the skin from our faces. I dropped the Whalers speed down to 5 mph and followed my existing GPS track back thru the inlet while my wife stayed on the handheld and watched behind us for overtaking boats.

We managed to make it to a friends dock tie up and run for cover. For a ten minute period lighting was popping around us at 20 - 30 second intervals. One of the boats I'd seen running the inlet actually lost his electrical system to a near by lighting strike. We we very fortunate that day .... what amazed us the most was the speed at which things happened. The next year when Garmin/XM released their weather partnership I ran to install on our boat.

Here is another story as told by a fellow Whaler owner. Happened last year in the Gulf of Mexico.

"If the Whaler contest wouldn't have ended already, I think I might have won it with what I put my 23 year old, 25 Outrage through.

Yesterday I took my future brother-in-laws fishing offshore in the Gulf of Mexico. I watched the weather and buoy forecast a few days ahead of time to see if it is going to be worthwhile. Mind you that the future in-laws that I am planning to take are 16 and 12, and have never fished deep sea. We had planned on going Monday, but the weatherman forecasted some thunderstorms in the morning and I decided that it would be better if we went out Tuesday. So Monday, I pretty much spend the day getting the boat ready so we can leave early Tuesday morning.

We wake up at 0500, get ready and head down to the stall to get the boat. Launch the boat and set off out of he Matagorda Harbor at 0630. We are heading out to the NOAA Weather Buoy that is station 60 statute miles out of the Matagorda Jetties. Anyways, the long ride makes the boys anxious to catch some fish. So we stop at a rig to try and catch some king mackrel, but the water is really off color due to all the heavy rain that we have seen in the previous weeks that has dumped into the Gulf. So we are back underway headed out to the buoy fishing weedlines and such working our way out. We finally hit a color change and the water went from a murky green color to a vibrant crystal clear blue that you only see in the movies. We finally make it to the buoy, tried to troll, but the seaweed was thick and scattered which ended up getting entangled in our lines. Although a 40 or 50lb. wahoo did follow and annihilate a Chaos lure that we offered. After that, we continued to fish and chum, trying to draw a strike but the fish thought otherwise. So then we are going to start fishing our way back in and hit a few wrecks. We left the buoy and started heading for a wreck that was in and east of the buoy about 10 miles. As we are about halfway there there is a storm that is brewing to the west of us. Back home is a North Westerly compass heading. We started to go back home instead of fishing anymore due to the inclimate weather. I began to see a few lightning strikes so instead of heading to Matagorda, I started to head to Sargent which is 30 miles up the coast. After a few minutes I decided that Sargent wasn't going to be as good of idea as I thought, so I pointed the boat towards Freeport, which is another 30 miles up the coast. Now the storm is as far as I can see west, north, and south. I stopped the boat, grabbed life vests for the boys and my self, got us all strapped in and gave them strict orders for them not to leave the boat if something happens. By now, the older one is as quiet as a mouse and the younger is scared and crying a bit. About that time, I could feel the first gales of what was to come. I started heading back towards Matagorda, then it hit. gale force winds, driving rain, and waves that were high and stacked together like cardboard. The only thing that I could do, but point the bow of the boat into the 12' waves. Every raindrop stung from be propelled by the 50 m.p.h. winds. As I got to the top of a wave I had to hammmer the throttles so I wouldn't nose dive into the next wave and fill the boat with water. At this moment all I could do was pray and keep going. I prayed to the Good Lord so that I could get those boys home safe. I'm sure that God got tired of listening to me. The first wave of storms, 12' seas, and pounding rain lasted for 90 minutes. We caught a little break from the rain, but the seas were still rolling, though not as high because the wind had layed quite a bit. After about a five mile run the second wave of storms set in and it was just as bad as the first. Only this time the waves were coming at me from the north, so I could point my boat towards HOME!!! This lasted much longer than the first round and the swells were coming from the north and the west. After 2 more hours of fighting that weather system we seemed to be in the clear. The sky was still a little cloudy, but for the most part clear. I began to assess the damage that was done and realized how LUCKY we are to be alive. My bow rail has come loose and was plopping around. I had a casting platform that was screwed into the deck portion of the bow. All 12 screws were torn out and the platform is resting halfway in my fish box. My console is totally busted loose and the only thing holding it on is the T-top. The T-top has busted some welds and 2 legs that were screwed into the deck have stripped the screw holes out and are loose. The forward deck is totally loose and all the screw holes are stripped from the weight of the console and T-top getting jammed around. I lost a speaker that was strapped on the t-top. I had to rip it from the wires so that it wouldn't hit me head during round 1 of this. The only thing that is still attached good is the leaning post. I feel lucky to be alive today, but more importantly I got the boys back in safe. I feel that Boston Whaler is good part of that reason I am here today. I'm also sure the 3 and half hours of praying had alot to do with it too."

posted 03-31-2008 03:59 PM ET (US)            

The storms roll in very fast and they are difficult to outrun. I do drop my antena and outriggers and haul a$$.
I have been caught a few times in very nasty lightning storms with heavy rains and strong gusting winds. This has all resulted in one very careful captain. I watch the weather like a hawk. If I see those anvil clouds forming, the motors are fired up and we're heading to a safe port.

posted 03-31-2008 11:04 PM ET (US)            

Long story short, my friend Nate had really long hair - down to his shoulders or more. His hair was standing straight up to the sky. Craziest thing I have ever experienced. Apparently that meant that we were in the direct path of lightning. With the boat maxed out and the oars paddling, we got to shore and got as low as we could until the storm passed.

posted 04-06-2008 09:09 AM ET (US)            

The truck or car might sustain electronic damage due to the electromagnetic force behind the lightning charge. This force is capable of inducing stray electrical currents on any metal object within a distance from the discharge.