I was hiking with a friend in the English Lake District in 2015. As usual, it was raining… In the distance, we heard a single thunderclap a long way off, and decided our best course of action was to cross the ridgeline to a small cave, where we would wait out the storm. The storm had other ideas. The next thunderclap was right over our heads. I remember seeing a blinding white light all around me, and my friend said I jumped six feet in the air. The ER staff couldn’t believe their eyes: no burn marks, no symptoms of stroke, and my EKG was perfectly normal. ‘Lucky’ doesn’t begin to cover it!

The chances of being struck by lightning in the are less than 1 in a million. A high percentage of cases are fatal, causing around 27 deaths per year in the USA. So what do you do if you’re caught outdoors during a thunderstorm? Here are the Do’s & Don’ts of lightning survival:

• Do seek shelter. Buildings or hard-top cars are the best. Be sure to roll up the windows. Stay away from concrete walls due to the reinforcement rods that run through them.

• Do get down from elevated areas such as hills and ridgelines.

• Do get away from bodies of water.

• Do stay away from metallic objects such as barbed wire fences, power lines, windmills etc.

• Don’t shelter under isolated trees. If there's nothing else around, walk half the tree's height away, and crouch down there.

• Don’t lie flat on the ground. Crouch down in a ball-like position with your head tucked and hands over your ears so that you are down low with minimal contact with the ground.

• Don’t shelter under a cliff or rocky overhang.

And if someone you’re with is that one in a million? Here’s how to help:

1) Call For Help

2) Call 911 immediately. Give directions to your location and information about the strike victim(s). It is safe to use a cell phone during a storm.

3) Assess The Situation: How many victims are there? Where was the victim struck? Is the storm still continuing? Nature of injuries? Do I need to move myself and the victim?

4) Assess the patient. Are they conscious? Breathing? Can you feel a pulse? If not, start CPR immediately.