Nearly 4,000 lightning bolts struck off the southwest Florida coast in just 15 minutes on Wednesday.
A total of 3,946 lightning strikes were recorded in the Gulf of Mexico west of the cities of Naples and Fort Myers, according to WINK in Fort Myers.
“WOW! Mother Nature going absolutely nuts off the Southwest Florida coast right now,” Matt Devitt, the chief meteorologist at the station, wrote on X, formerly Twitter.
“4,000 lightning strikes with this storm in just 15 minutes. Check out the lightning density and tight clustering of strikes in the bottom image.”
WOW! Mother Nature going absolutely nuts off the Southwest Florida coast right now. 4,000 lightning strikes with this storm in just 15 minutes. Check out the lightning density and tight clustering of strikes in the bottom image. ⚡️ @WINKNews @stormhour pic.twitter.com/TCKTuF7K4u
— Matt Devitt (@MattDevittWX) March 27, 2024
Southwest Florida experienced wet weather on Thursday morning, and strong winds between 30 and 40 mph are forecast for the afternoon as a cold front passes through.
Several high and moderate rip current warnings are also in place across the state following Wednesday night’s storm, including in Pinellas, coastal Hillsborough, coastal Manatee, coastal Sarasota, coastal Charlotte and coastal Lee counties.
The National Weather Service has advised people not to enter the surf at the beaches of Volusia, Brevard, Indian River, St. Lucie and Martin counties.
Florida was ranked the second-most lightning-prone state last year, with more than 19 million lightning events, according to Vaisala Xweather. It was ranked behind Texas, which saw 42 million.
