[Table of Contents]

B. COMPARISONS BY TYPE OF INCIDENT

Agriculture

Agriculture activities and locations from the 1890s in Table 7 and 1990s in Table 28 are compared in Table 54. These tables had grouped the detailed listings in Tables 6 and 27. Table 54 shows results by the percentage of the entire sample of reports within each period's dataset so that relative values can be assessed. Only entries with at least 1.0% in one of the columns are included.

The Agriculture group in the 1890s accounts for nearly 7% of deaths from 1891-1894, and 3% of injuries. None of the 1990s groups account for 3% of the deaths or injuries.

Indoors

Indoors activities and locations that were grouped in Tables 8 and 29 are compared in Table 55. Recall that in the 1890s, Indoors incidents are the most frequent type for both deaths and injuries (Table 4).

During the 1890s, the largest Indoors lightning death activity was bed/sleeping, while other routine activities inside houses occurred less often. Most of these activities are infrequent in the 1990s. House fires accounted for 1.6% of deaths in both periods.

Telephones were identified as the cause of 0.4% of deaths and 2.5% of injuries in the 1990s (Table 55). A similar rate of 2.4% of US casualties from 1959 to 1994 was related to telephones (Curran et al., 1997).

Two locations are very frequent in Table 55. When all types of dwellings are combined, they account for over 20% of deaths and injuries. There was also a large number of church injuries in one case (Table 8, section 3B). In the 1990s, dwellings account for fewer deaths and injuries than 100 years earlier.

It is probable that the large decrease in dwelling-related fatalities and injuries are due to better-grounded houses now than a century ago. With the installation of power, plumbing, and phones, a lightning strike to a home now has a path to ground that greatly reduces the impact on the building than was the case in the 1890s when these improvements were beginning to be installed in the United States.

Outdoors

Outdoors activities and locations that were grouped in Tables 11 and 32 are compared in Table 56.

The most frequent activities for Outdoors lightning deaths during the 1890s involved wagons and horses in various situations, while these activities are few in the 1990s. People who were walking were lightning victims at nearly the same rate in both centuries, while many more people were sitting or standing when they became lightning victims in the 1990s. Military activities accounted for many injuries in both periods.

Outdoors locations frequently involve people who were under or near a tree. The 1990s rate of 15.1% of deaths is more than twice as large as in the 1890s. Curran et al. (1997, 2000) found that a similar percentage of 13.7% of US lightning casualties from 1959 to 1994 were under trees. Such results indicate the need for continued education of the lightning hazard at this location.

In the 1890s, people were victims of lightning on the road or during travel, which was typically not in metal-topped enclosed vehicles. The 1990s dataset did not have any of these entries, but the same frequency of 3 to 4% involved being near vehicles of all types.

Recreation

Recreation activities and locations listed in Table 12 for the 1890s and grouped in Table 34 for the 1990s are compared in Table 57.

The most frequent activities for Recreation involve the category of water, which includes fishing and on pleasure watercraft of all types. These percentages have greatly increased in the 1990s over the 1890s. Table 57 shows that 12.1% of the deaths and 2.8% of injuries are in such situations. Curran et al. (1997, 2000) show a similar value of 8.1% of US casualties from 1959 to 1994 as being in locations related to water.

The most frequent Recreation locations, as expected, are on the beach, and in or on the water. Over 4% of recent injuries have occurred during camping. Another frequent location is under or near trees; this percentage has increased.

Small structures

Small Structures activities and locations listed in Table 13 for the 1890s and grouped in Table 36 for the 1990s are compared in Table 58.

The only Small Structure activity or location that reached the 1% threshold for these comparisons is 1990s injuries in or near a vehicle.

Sports

Sports activities and locations listed in Table 14 for the 1890s and grouped in Table 38 for the 1990s are compared in Table 59.

The most frequent Sports activities in the 1890s were attending circus and playing baseball, but these did not appear in the recent dataset. Several other activities are evident in the 1990s. The most frequent Sports locations were tents and open fields in the 1890s, which are replaced by golf and recreation in general in the 1990s.

Table 59 shows that 3.3% of deaths and 3.7% of injuries were during a golf activity in the 1990s. A similar value of 4.9% was found by Curran et al. (1997, 2000) for US casualties that were related to golf from 1959 to 1994.

All activities

All activities are combined in Figure 15 and Table 60 from Table 15 for the 1890s and Table 39 for the 1990s. A 2% death threshold was used.

The most frequent 1890s activities were agriculture, inside a house, and riding a wagon or horse. In the 1990s, the most frequent activities are boating, golfing, and camping, as well as walking and standing.

FIGURE 15. Comparison of the percentage of the most common lightning death activities 100 years apart.

All locations

All types of activities are combined in Figure 16 and Table 61 based on Tables 16 and 40.

House and home deaths, and those in open fields, decreased greatly over the century. Deaths under or near a tree more than doubled. Casualties occurring in farms, barns, school, and work were down, but beach, water, and recreation increased significantly in the 1990s.

FIGURE 16. Comparison of the percentage of the most common lightning death locations 100 years apart.

Next: Chapter 5, Section C: Comparisons of additional casualty information and D: Comparisons of damages