Captain Gus Bertolf has seen his fair share of severe weather. He's a Long Island Sound Boat Captain.
But last July 18th he was working at Greenwich construction site, when the skies went dark and he took a risk.
While out on the water he got struck by lightning.
Struck by a bolt with the equivalent energy of the third rail in the subway, Gus says he's lucky he's alive.
About 100 lightning fatalities happen in America each year. 90% of lightning victims do survive like Gus but then must undergo a painful recovery.
"The whole sky lit up and the next thing I knew I had ringing in my ears for two days," he said.
Here's the science behind this lightning safety. It's not because of the rubber on tires , it's actually the cars metal frame conducts the electricity and as long as you are not touching any metal of the car you're safe.
Becoming a small target away from trees is a last resort. Your first line of defense should always be to seek shelter when it comes to surviving severe weather.
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