Fisherman Killed By Lightning In Orleans - Striper Talk Striped Bass Fishing, Surfcasting, Boating

BigFish · 07-01-2009, 09:05 PM

Fisherman in his 30's was struck by lightning while fishing in his boat in Orleans. Sad news. Condolences to all who knew him.

Slingah · 07-01-2009, 09:29 PM

wow....horrible!! T&P's to that guys family...

Saltheart · 07-01-2009, 10:06 PM

A friend of mine was killed by lightning while fishing on a lake in a boat. I think it happens more than we would like to admit. When its around , its time to get out of Dodge. I hope none of us know this guy just killed in Orleans.

Rob Rockcrawler · 07-02-2009, 03:24 AM

Thoughts and prayers sent. He died doing what he loved but way too soon. Im very wary of lightening now after being caught in a surprise storm that poped up on the canal a few years ago, before i had my bike, a long and scary walk down the service road.

Raven · 07-02-2009, 04:16 AM

i'm curious to know where the lightening struck on the boat
or if it hit his rod. Poor guy....truly sad - at such a young age too.

TheSpecialist · 07-02-2009, 05:53 AM

He was clamming.

It has always been curious to me how when lightning comes alot of boaters stick it out, especially when they are so close to port..

Striperhound · 07-02-2009, 05:59 AM

when I was a Charter Captain on Lake Ontario years ago there was another Captain who always stayed out in the worst lightning storms. I asked him one time what gives and he said " in 25 years of being on the water in the worst storms he has never had an issue" I dont think I would tempt fate the same way.

Sea Dangles · 07-02-2009, 07:19 AM

I think I saw GOD yesterday on the ride back from Quicks to NPT.He wanted to know why people are on the water in such situations.Options are extremely limited when it comes time to outrun a storm on the water.My hair was standing on end with all that electricity in the air. Fishing quickly became secondary and self preservation came to the forefront.

Saltheart · 07-02-2009, 08:38 AM

When my friend got hit , the lightning didn't hit the boat. It hit him right on top of the head.

Some say that if the boat has a conductive mast or high rigging , that the mast , etc acts like a protective umbrella. When I sailed , my mast was grounded with a permanent connection to a sea cock. If it appears close , I would also attach jumper cables and drag one end in tha water. In a sailboat you move very slowly , so if you are 25 miles out , it might take 5 or 6 hours to get in so you just have to ride it out.

I have heard of many fisherman getting hit but In the 23 years I had my sail boat , I never heard of anybody getting hit.

JoeBass · 07-02-2009, 08:39 AM

That's terrible. I've gotten caught a few times. Fishing's good, you want to get in just a couple more casts then suddenly you're in the middle of it.

Crafty Angler · 07-02-2009, 08:50 AM

Think I've said it before but lightning doesn't necessarily hit the tallest object in a group - it will hit the object offering the least resistance...

A 10 foot graphite rod fills that bill nicely, I guess...

Sad news about the guy in Orleans -

Yesterday's weather in Newport was pretty violent, too -

You just know a black/greenish sky with low stratus under it is never a good thing -

MakoMike · 07-02-2009, 09:45 AM

I've been caught out, no chance of making port, I was 100 miles away from the nearest port. Thanks god we never got hit. Also caught the biggest blue marlin caught to date in that storm. Hairy fishting a big blue in the middle of a thunderstorm.

Sea Dangles · 07-02-2009, 11:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Crafty Angler

Think I've said it before but lightning doesn't necessarily hit the tallest object in a group - it will hit the object offering the least resistance...

A 10 foot graphite rod fills that bill nicely, I guess...

Sad news about the guy in Orleans -

Yesterday's weather in Newport was pretty violent, too -

You just know a black/greenish sky with low stratus under it is never a good thing -

Crafty, the sky looked like it did in Ghostbusters. Pulled into Castle Hill and had one bolt hit THIS close.

FishermanTim · 07-02-2009, 11:33 AM

Though this is not fishing related, I was watching some kids when I was in high school, and we were playing soccer on a field across the street from their house.
I knew that there were storms forecast for that evening, but I figured if the kids could get some "run-around" time, they would tire themselve out.
All I can remember was seeing the flash where everything turned white, and when we heard the BOOM we ALL LANDED ON OUR FEET!

My guess is that the lightening hit a tree, telephone pole or the fence surronding the field and we got "zapped" from the charge running out from the strike zone.
We were all fine, but we developed a better respect for what can/could happen if you play with fire. To this day I LOVE thunder storms. I have had a couple of camping trips where storms rolled over our campsite, and I slept like a baby.

The sound of rolling thunder can peak my interest and put me to sleep with equal efficiency.

Brian L · 07-02-2009, 02:00 PM

Wow! I always have wondered if lightning will actually hit a boat. I've had some days that I've been super nervous. What an awful way to go.

Had a freaky night back in the beginning of June in Soco. Got finished fluking and was a fish shy of my limit of Bass just before a storm rolled in. It looked like it was staying a few miles inland, so we stuck it out for a bit.

After a half hour or so, the wind direction shifted and started blowing the storm out to sea. Decided to make the run back and fish by the harbor's entrance, so we could get in quick if there was a problem. We stopped to make a drift, my friend cast his line out, and lo and behold, the 25# mono floated in the air and stayed there due to the incredible amount of static electricity out there. About the same time I'm watching his line suspend like magic, I hear a popping, buzzy sounding noise. Looked all over the console, thinking I had a loose wire, but quickly reallized the buzzing was coming from the end of my 7' graphite boat rod. It was literally crackling with electricity. I asked my friend to "quickly, QUICKly" reel that line in and gunned it. We shot in to the truck just in time and witnessed a major light show for a good half hour. That freaked us out a bit, to say the least.

likwid · 07-02-2009, 02:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Saltheart

When my friend got hit , the lightning didn't hit the boat. It hit him right on top of the head.

Some say that if the boat has a conductive mast or high rigging , that the mast , etc acts like a protective umbrella. When I sailed , my mast was grounded with a permanent connection to a sea cock. If it appears close , I would also attach jumper cables and drag one end in tha water. In a sailboat you move very slowly , so if you are 25 miles out , it might take 5 or 6 hours to get in so you just have to ride it out.

I have heard of many fisherman getting hit but In the 23 years I had my sail boat , I never heard of anybody getting hit.

If the rig and electronics are well grounded, you're safe on a sailboat.

People seem to think they can outrun these cells, but some of them move upwards of 30-35+ mph. Good luck esp. when the crap hits and its blowing rain sideways.

Couple years ago some major tstorms rolled through S Dartmouth.
It wasn't the 110 foot rig that got hit, but a Rhodes 19 not too far away.
It sunk on its mooring.

"Tallest object" doesn't always apply.

sokinwet · 07-02-2009, 02:10 PM

"About the same time I'm watching his line suspend like magic"
Same thing happened to me tournament bass fishing on the Conn. River yrs. ago....pretty scary...lesson learned!

Brian L · 07-02-2009, 02:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sokinwet

"About the same time I'm watching his line suspend like magic"
Same thing happened to me tournament bass fishing on the Conn. River yrs. ago....pretty scary...lesson learned!

Before this year, the last time I saw line suspend was in '91 while Bassin' up on Lake Champlain. We watched the storm develop between the mountains and quickly swing through the valley and the lake. I was fishing in a Gambler Bass Boat, so thankfully we had the speed (65MPH Plus) to just outrun the storm for 20 miles all the way back to the ramp. It was freaky watching a big booming lighting storm chase us all the way back, just a mile or so behind us.

Swimmer · 07-03-2009, 11:06 AM

This guy did stand up in the boat and it hit him in the head I believe. Witness said it took his head off.

Mr. Sandman · 07-04-2009, 07:05 AM

A few days ago, a buddy saw lighting hit one of those metal beach-fench posts...he said the sand lit up in a big circle around the post. He headed back to the vehicle after that.

I got caught a long time ago in a small boat offshore and it was scary. Lighting hitting the water directly, we were lucky.

Raven · 07-04-2009, 06:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mr. Sandman

.
Lighting hitting the water directly, we were lucky.

before i was born my Dad got caught swimming in a lightning storm where the lightning bolt hit the water close enough to where he was swimming. he said it felt like someone had kicked him in the Back.

Now i was wondering: if you were in waders........
would you have felt that KICK in the back like he did
or would you be insulated from it?