Lightning Strikes Spark 34 New Fires in Northern California

Lightning continues to be a very real danger for Californians as Northern California struggles with the effects of several thunderstorms that cropped up in the region over the weekend. Lightning strikes started 34 new blazes in only 24 hours this past weekend, county officials reported.

Luckily, Northern California fire officials were on the case and all the fires have been extinguished. The fires burned 11 acres in all according to a spokesman for the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. But still, the 800+ lightning strikes this weekend demonstrate that they are a continuing danger for the Northern California region this summer.

This worry is only amplified after Governor Brown recently declared a state of emergency for wildfires. Many of the fires that have caused extreme amounts of damage were started by lightning strikes, so even though Northern California was quick to extinguish fires this time around, there is no telling if the next time thunder and lightning roll through, there may be a fire like the Lodge fire, which has burned roughly 9,500 acres, and is only 35% contained as of Monday.

Read more about the fires here.