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If you’re outside during a thunderstorm, you’re at risk of being struck by lightning. Of course, the average person’s risk of being struck is relatively low. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the chances of you getting struck by lightning are less than one in a million. But still, people can occasionally find themselves in situations where they are at a higher risk.
There are some places where someone might assume they are safe from lightning, when in reality, they aren’t. As one TikTok user recently learned, one of those places is their bedroom.
How Did This Woman Get Struck by Lightning?
TikTok user Catalina (@catalinax._06) shows how she ended up requiring emergency medical treatment in a video with over 416,000 views.
“In the hospital after getting struck by lightning in my room,” she writes in the text overlaying the video, which shows her laying in a hospital bed.
In the comments section, she elaborated on what happened.
“I was sitting at my vanity cleaning my piercings and I got hit,” she stated. “It went through my [roof] and ceiling.”
While she says she was on her phone at the time, she states that it was not plugged into a wall. She describes herself as lucky and notes that what happened to her was “very rare.”
How Can You Prevent This?
In the comments section, users began offering their advice to prevent this from happening.
“If you’re on your phone while it’s charging and plugged into a wall, the electricity can travel through the wire basically shocking you,” claimed a user.
“Stay away from windows and mirrors when it thunders okay got it!” exclaimed another.
For her part, Catalina suggests that one should leave the higher floors of the house and stay in the lower ones. But is all of this advice correct?
First, the advice about lowering one’s self and staying away from doors and windows is accurate. According to the CDC, “lightning tends to strike the tallest object around,” which can be one’s house. Additionally, the CDC echoes the advice that one should avoid windows and doors while adding that one should also avoid porches and concrete.
Second, the National Weather Service notes that one should stay away from corded electrical devices during a thunderstorm, which can include a charging phone. That said, once a cellphone has been disconnected, it is safe to use.
However, the advice about covering mirrors is a myth. Mirrors neither attract lightning or are particularly good electricity conductors. Consequently, one need not cover them at the onset of a thunderstorm.
@catalinax._06 So lucky to be alive rn:(
Commenters Share Their Lightning Stories
Other commenters claimed that they, too, had been struck by lightning and survived. This is not especially surprising as survival rates for lightning strikes are over 90%.
“I KNEW I WASN’T CRAZY WHEN I SAW LIGHTNING ENTER MY WINDOW but I hope you’re okay sending prayers,” alleged a commenter.
“It happen to me 6 years ago,” claimed another. “Thank [god] im alive.”
“So im not even safe in my house. I have severe storm ptsd after experiencing a very scary storm at a young age. I always thought being inside id be safe but I guess not,” lamented a third.
BroBible reached out to Catalina via TikTok direct message and comment.