Lightning streaks across By Area skies
SAN FRANCISCO (KTVU and wires) – A low pressure system triggered almost 1,000 lightning strikes across the Bay Area from Thursday night into Friday morning, but fortunately they did not ignite any major wildfires in the drought-parched region.
In San Jose, a lightning strike sheered a 90-foot redwood tree in half and blew out a nearby power transformer. Utility crews quickly repaired the transformer and a handful of nearby homes in the area around Taylor St and Alameda had their power stored before dawn.
Rich Mull, who lives at the home where the tree was struck, said it sounded like an explosion.
"It sounded like a big explosion," he said. "The whole sky lit up blue..I didn't know what it was... I thought it was a transformer that blew, but Carl looked up and said we've lost our tree."
Lightning also forced a delay in the Huey Lewis and the News concert at the Mountain Winery in Saratoga. Elaine Leung was at the show and tweeted KTVU that the concert suffered a 30 minute delay so "Huey wouldn't get electrocuted."
Lightning struck 978 times in the Bay Area Thursday night during a dry storm that prompted a Red Flag Warning for fire danger, according to the National Weather Service.
The National Weather Service issued a red flag warning running until 11 a.m. Friday for the entire Bay Area because of the combination of dry hillsides and the potential for lightning strikes.
However, while the storm front generated lightning it did not bring any significant much needed rain to the area.
In the Sierra, the weather service issued a raw Fire Weather Watch for the Lake Tahoe area as the thunderstorms would be moving into the region later Friday.
Forecasters also said isolated downbursts of wind may make fighting existing fires more difficult.
The lightning will also pose risks to campers, hikers and people at outdoor sporting events, weather service officials said.