"Flash Animation": Insurance Information Institute Teams Up With NOAA, LPII To Spread Word About Lightning Safety

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Jun 27, 2012, 04:26 ET

New I.I.I. Lightning Video Can Help Save Your Life

NEW YORK, June 27, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Getting struck by lightning is no laughing matter, but a new animated video produced by the Insurance Information Institute (I.I.I) uses humor to bring home the important lesson: when thunder roars, go indoors.

Entitled 'Beyond Thunder Dumb: When Lightning Strikes…', the video is available on both the I.I.I.'s website and its YouTube channel. It offers safety tips from the I.I.I., the Lightning Protection Institute (LPI) and the National Weather Service.

Summer is peak lightning season, as many people are spending more time outdoors. Every year lightning strikes the ground 25 million times and injures about a thousand people in the U.S., according to the LPI.

Lightning is an underrated killer, and even if they survive, people struck by lightning can suffer from a variety of long-term, debilitating symptoms including memory loss, attention deficits, sleep disorders, chronic pain, numbness, dizziness, joints stiffness, irritability, fatigue, weakness, muscle spasms, depression, and more. Eighty percent of lightning victims are men.

The best way to protect yourself from lightning is to avoid the threat. Cancel or postpone activities if thunderstorms are expected. If you are outside and hear thunder, take shelter immediately in a house, a large building or other substantial, fully enclosed structure, preferably one protected with a lightning protection system. In the absence of a building, hard topped-vehicles are generally safe shelters as well.

RELATED LINKS
Article: Lightning Coverage and Safety
Facts and Statistics: Lightning
Videos: Lightning Myths (also available in Spanish); How to Pick a Lightning Protection System (also in Spanish); Being Smart About Lightning Protection.

THE I.I.I. IS A NONPROFIT, COMMUNICATIONS ORGANIZATION SUPPORTED BY THE INSURANCE INDUSTRY.

Insurance Information Institute, 110 William Street, New York, NY 10038; (212) 346-5500; www.iii.org

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SOURCE Insurance Information Institute