Storms with heavy lightning have increased in the Pittsburgh area. Here's how you can stay safe

Lately in our region, we've seen an uptick in lightning during storms, and that has prompted plenty of conversation about what is safe and what isn't. 

Part of that conversation, somehow, has been whether or not it's safe to shower during a storm. While a lot of what you may have heard growing up can be considered old wives' tales, it turns out the old wives were quite smart. 

Lightning can be intense and awesome, but it can also be deadly - as it was for a man cutting his grass in Steubenville on Friday. 

National Weather Service Pittsburgh's Warning Coordination Meteorologist Fred McMullin said you could be standing in your yard and not even see it. 

"There are some documented cases with lightning traveling as far away as a half mile from where it initially made impact on the ground," he explained. 

He said if you do see lightning, you're close enough to be struck, so forget that idea of counting where every second means the lightning is a mile away. 

"For every five-second difference between lightning and thunder, the storm is one mile away, so it's closer than you think," McMullin said. 

So, getting back to the big conversation - when it is storming, is it safe to shower?

"No," McMullin said. "It is not safe to shower during a thunderstorm because, again, the plumbing of your house could have copper pipes or metal pipes, and water conducts electricity. So, if lightning were to strike your house or near your house, it could get to your pipes. Then, if you're in the shower, you could be impacted." 

McMullin also added that if you have to make a call, use your computer. He said if you can go wireless, that will remove the chances of being impacted. 

There also is the old wisdom of being safe inside of a car during a storm, but it's not for the reason you think. 

"[The lightning] will go around the vehicle," McMullin explained. "The metal frame- that's why you're safe, because you're inside the vehicle; it's not because you have rubber tires." 

McMullin said that you need to remember that, while it can vary, a lightning bolt can heat the spot it hits to an instant 25,000 degrees Fahrenheit. 

As for when you can resume normal activities following a storm, McMullin said it's around 30 minutes, because a storm can throw a lightning bolt 20 miles in any direction, including behind it. 

Finally, while it's long been believed that your chances of being hit by lightning are astronomical, if you live to be 80, you have a 1 in 15,300 chance of being hit by lightning.