[candymosh]

South Carolina Man Electrocuted by Lightning for Sixth Time

Updated: Thursday, 30 Jun 2011, 8:09 AM CDT
Published : Thursday, 30 Jun 2011, 8:09 AM CDT

(NewsCore) - Lightning does strike the same place more than once -- and an unlucky man from Seneca, S.C., has the scars to prove it.

Melvin Roberts, 59, was recovering in the hospital Thursday after being hit for the sixth time. He was outside his home covering his lawn mower when the bolt hit him on Monday, his wife Martha Roberts told WYFF4.com.

Roberts said the last time he was struck by lightning was in 2007 while trying to protect his chicken coop.

"I went to cover my chickens up, and I believe it was clear. But when I woke up, I was all bloody and burned and confused and had my little chickens lying with their feet up," he said.

Electrocution from previous strikes left him permanently disabled.

"I ain't saying be afraid of it, but I'm going to have to learn to give it a little respect. It can happen to anybody," said Roberts.

He said his misfortunes with lightning have replicated his married life so far.

"I've been married five times and I've been hit by lightning five times. (My wife) says this is the sixth time. I'm not leaving my wife, so I'm going to have to try to do something different."

Read more: http://www.myfoxhouston.com/dpps/new...#ixzz1QnBVmgR5

[candymosh]

unlucky fucker.......and lucky to have survived it that many times.

[smackem]

"I went to cover my chickens up, and I believe it was clear. But when I woke up, I was all bloody and burned and confused and had my little chickens lying with their feet up," he said.

Fried chicken for dinner!

[shinsgirl]

Does anyone else remember the movie the great outdoors? This dude reminds me of the guy in the restaurant that gets struck by lightening 6, 6, no 66 times. Lol. How unfortunate for him.

[Hunted]

Originally Posted by smackem ↗

Fried chicken for dinner!

[gatagato]

According to Guinness World Records, the person struck by lightning more recorded times than any other human being is Roy Cleveland Sullivan: struck seven times (but this dude is VERY close:just another effort to win )

Roy Cleveland Sullivan (February 7, 1912 – September 28, 1983) was a U.S. park ranger in Shenandoah National Park in Virginia. Between 1942 and 1977, Sullivan was hit by lightning on seven different occasions and survived all of them. For this reason, he gained a nickname "Human Lightning Conductor" or "Human Lightning Rod". Sullivan is recognized by Guinness World Records as the person struck by lightning more recorded times than any other human being. He died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound at the age of 71 over an unrequited love.
Seven strikes


1.The first documented lightning strike of Sullivan occurred in April 1942. He was hiding from a thunderstorm in a fire lookout tower. The tower was newly built and had no lightning rod at the time; it was hit seven or eight times. Inside the tower, "fire was jumping all over the place." Sullivan ran out and just a few feet away received what he considered to be his worst lightning strike. It burned a half-inch strip all along his right leg, hit his toe, and left a hole in his shoe.
2.The second bolt hit him in July 1969. Unusually, he was hit while in his truck, driving on a mountain road—the metal body of a vehicle normally protects people in cases such as this. The lightning first hit nearby trees and was deflected into the open window of the truck. The strike knocked Sullivan unconscious and burned off his eyebrows, eyelashes, and most of his hair. The uncontrolled truck kept moving until it stopped near a cliff edge.
3.In 1970, Sullivan was struck while in his front yard. The lightning hit a nearby power transformer and from there jumped to his left shoulder, searing it.
4.The fourth strike occurred in 1972, while Sullivan was working inside a ranger station in Shenandoah National Park. It set his hair on fire; he tried to smother the flames with his jacket. Then he rushed to the rest room, but couldn't fit under the water tap and so used a wet towel instead. Although he never was a fearful man, after the fourth strike he began to believe that some force was trying to destroy him and he acquired a fear of death. For months, whenever he was caught in a storm while driving his truck, he would pull over and lie down on the front seat until the storm passed. He also began to carry a can of water with him and believed that he would somehow attract lightning even if he stood in a crowd of people.
5.On August 7, 1973, while he was out on patrol in the park, Sullivan saw a storm cloud forming and drove away quickly. But the cloud, he said later, seemed to be following him. When he finally thought he had outrun it, he decided it was safe to leave his truck. Soon after, he was struck by a lightning bolt. Sullivan stated that he actually saw the bolt that hit him. The lightning set his hair on fire, moved down his left arm and left leg and knocked off his shoe, although it did not untie the lace. It then crossed over to his right leg just below the knee. Still conscious, Sullivan crawled to his truck and poured the can of water, which he always kept there, over his head.
6.On June 5, 1976, Sullivan was struck by the sixth bolt, injuring his ankle. It was reported that he saw a cloud, thought that it was following him, tried to run away, but was struck anyway.
7.On Saturday morning, June 25, 1977, Sullivan was fishing in a freshwater pool when he was struck the seventh time. The lightning hit the top of his head, singeing his hair, and traveled down burning his chest and stomach. Sullivan turned to his car and then another unexpected thing happened—a bear appeared and tried to steal trout from his fishing line. Sullivan had the strength and courage to strike the bear with a tree branch. He claimed that this was the twenty-second time he hit a bear with a stick in his lifetime.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roy_Sullivan

According to weather.gov:

the odds of being struck by lightning in a given year (reported deaths + injuries) are
1/1,000,000

Odds of being struck by lightning in a given year (estimated total deaths + injuries)
1/775,000

Odds of being struck in your lifetime (Est. 80 years)
1/10,000

One in a million... what a luck, to be struck so many times: aww...

[candymosh]

I think he needs to stop messing around trying to cover up stuff when there is a storm acoming.

[gatagato]

Lol, I was reading about the recordman, found this:

He was avoided by people later in life because of their fear of being hit by lightning, and this saddened him. He once recalled
"For instance, I was walking with the chief ranger one day when lightning struck way off. The chief said, 'I'll see you later."

[candymosh]

[Faline]

yep unlucky and lucky lol