United States

Storm and high wind

Reviewed 2026-07-26

Use at your own risk. For education and research only, not medical advice. Check the numbers and rules for the country you are in. They change. Before you rely on these cards, have a medical professional or a fire safety specialist review them. Disclaimer

Do this first

Get indoors before the storm arrives. Stay away from windows, and keep out from under trees, scaffolding and loose roofs.

A storm kills with what it throws around: branches, tiles, scaffolding and glass. Lightning can strike ten kilometers ahead of the rain. If you can hear thunder, you are already in range, and the last minutes before the front arrives are the worst time to be finishing anything outdoors.

Step by step

When a warning comes, bring in or tie down everything loose, such as furniture, trampolines and trash cans. Park the car away from trees.
Charge phones and power banks, and know where your flashlight is before the lights go out.
During the storm stay inside, away from windows, ideally in an inner room. Keep children and pets in.
If you hear thunder outdoors, get into a building or a hard-topped car. With no shelter, crouch low in a hollow with your feet together, away from lone trees, poles, fences and water.
Postpone driving. If the storm catches you, slow right down, keep a firm grip on the wheel for the gusts, and never stop under trees or power lines.
After the front passes, wait. Most trees and tiles fall in the gusts that follow. Treat every downed cable as live and stay twenty meters away.
Report damage without injury to the fire department line once the network calms. Report injuries and immediate danger to 911 now.

Never do this

Never shelter under a tree in a thunderstorm, and never keep the golf round, the harvest or the roof job going for one more minute.
Never touch downed lines or anything they touch, such as wires, fences and puddles.
Never go to look at the sea or the riverbank in a storm. Waves take people from piers every year.

Call emergency services if

Anyone injured by lightning, falling debris or glass. People struck by lightning are safe to touch. Start CPR if needed.
A tree or structure fallen on a person, a vehicle or an occupied house.
A downed power line, or a fire caused by a strike.

Common questions

How far away is the lightning?

Count the seconds from flash to thunder and divide by three to get kilometers. If it is under thirty seconds, take shelter now and stay there for thirty minutes after the last thunder.

Is a car safe in a thunderstorm?

A hard-topped car gives good protection, because the metal shell carries the current around you. Park away from trees and keep your hands off metal parts and radio aerials. Convertibles, bikes and tractors do not count.