A Hillsborough County teacher was hospitalized after lightning possibly shocked him while he worked in a school car line earlier this week.
Ten minutes into dismissal at York PreK-8 Innovation Academy in Apollo Beach on Tuesday, a light drizzle started, school district spokesperson Tanya Arja said. Students were moved under a covered area.
After a lightning strike near the school, school staff paused dismissal and moved everyone inside for about 25 minutes, Arja said.
One teacher at the car line said he did not get directly hit by lightning “but described what felt like a shock as he was holding an umbrella,” Arja said.
The teacher was taken to Tampa General Hospital as a precaution.
“We are grateful that the teacher is OK and will be returning to school,” Arja said.
Meteorologist Keily Delerme with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said metal in umbrellas can conduct electricity from lightning strikes.
Delerme said lightning can strike even when there is no rain at the top part of a storm called the anvil. Those strikes can be deadly, she said.
During pickup times in inclement weather, she said the safest places to be are inside a building or inside a car. While there’s no guarantee a car won’t be struck by lightning, the rubber wheels help protect those inside, she said.
“It’s very random, so it’s very hard to predict where it’s going to hit,” she said. “That’s why any time there’s a thunderstorm, our message is, ‘If thunder roars, go indoors.’”
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