Did you know that taking a shower or washing the dishes during a thunderstorm can be risky?

Although the probability of being struck by lightning strikes can be one in a million, each year around 24,000 people are killed by lightning globally and 240,000 people are injured. Although the probability of experiencing an electrical discharge in the atmosphere is low, it is important to know how to protect ourselves when thunder rushes through the sky.

The figures are cited by The Conversation, which says that in addition to not being near trees or windows, or talking on a land line during a thunderstorm, showering and washing dishes are also activities to avoid.

Thunderstorms are caused by two specific factors: humidity and the heat of the atmosphere. High temperatures and humidity generate large amounts of moist air that rises and becomes concentrated in the atmosphere.

Clouds containing millions of particles of liquid and solid water interact and can create lightning, that is, electrical discharges in the atmosphere. When the clouds move over the ground, they generate an electric charge in the ground, which is what causes the electricity generated in the air to end up colliding with the ground.

Unless you’re in a bathtub full of water in the garden or you’re in the rain in the middle of the street, you’re less likely to catch lightning. However, if it hits our house, the electricity will pass through metal cables or be connected to water in the plumbing. A shower or sink combines the two elements – water and metal – so that they can be perfect conductors of lightning strikes in the home.

The same media reported that the American Center for Disease Prevention and Control advises not to do any activities that include water during a thunderstorm, in order to reduce the risks of electrocution.

It is also not recommended to come into contact with a concrete wall, which can act as a conductor for the discharge of electric current from the atmosphere, as it is supported by metal beams. And, of course, avoid using any devices plugged into an outlet.