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• n  abrupt electric discharge from cloud to cloud or from cloud to earth accompanied by the emission of light
• n  the flash of light that accompanies an electric discharge in the atmosphere (or something resembling such a flash); can scintillate for a second or more

• Lightning is a serious menace to electrical apparatus.
• Chronic curiosity led Benjamin Franklin to fly a kite into a thunderstorm-he got a mild shock and proof that lightning is electrical.
• Many an unexplained crash of aircraft in stormy weather has called forth the theory that the plane was struck by lightning.

News & Articles

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• Lightning Blamed For Small Fires In Dinosaur National Monument
  Lightning is being blamed for starting a handful of fires near the Dinosaur National Monument.
  June 15, 2013 - CBS Denver
• Lightning Strike Causes Tank Fire
  Authorities say a lightning strike at a saltwater disposal facility in western North Dakota caused an explosion and a fire.  Fortunately, no one was hurt.
  June 15, 2013 - KVLY - KXJB Fargo
• Lightning sparks fires in Dinosaur Nat. Monument
  Lightning strikes from Thursday's storm caused wildfires across western Colorado. While crews have contained the Beaver Creek Fire near Rifle, firefighters are still working on two fires in Dinosaur National Monument.
  June 14, 2013 - KJCT 8 Grand Junction

Quotes

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• Henry Paulson in Khaleej Times
  What we've been doing here is moving, I think, with lightning speed to put necessary programs in place, to develop them, implement them, and then we need to monitor them while we're doing this,Paulson said at a recent forum in New York....
• Steve Yzerman in National Post
  There is no easy fix,Yzerman said. "I don't sit up here with the notion that there is a magic wand I can wave and make changes, and we're a Stanley Cup contender. I plan on making the Lightning better for the upcoming season, but the...
• Barack Obama in ABC News
  Under the cover of a large umbrella, Obama told thousands gathered that "a little bit of rain doesn't hurt anybody, but we don't want anybody being struck by lightning."