Chris Schultz
Carpal tunnel level member
- Location
- Minturn
What’s your threshold for operating/climbing/sending a climber out on crane work with lightning in the area? Is there an industry standard, or?……
Lightning Threshold
- Thread starter Chris Schultz
- Start date
Jehinten
Been here much more than a while
- Location
- Evansville
I dont know the standard, but 15 miles is close enough for me with any boom in the air (grapple loader truck, crane, or spider lift)
If we don't have a boom, just a Climber, we are often down sooner simply because with lightning often comes wind.
All of the above is really just for storm work, if we're not trying to prevent property damage we tend to play it even safer, as the tree will still be there when we get back to it.
If we don't have a boom, just a Climber, we are often down sooner simply because with lightning often comes wind.
All of the above is really just for storm work, if we're not trying to prevent property damage we tend to play it even safer, as the tree will still be there when we get back to it.
Chris Schultz
Carpal tunnel level member
- Location
- Minturn
Unfortunately, I don’t own a crane….. the company I use charges a $580 mobilizing/setup fee, so sending them down the road before the project is complete is a tough call. I was in between trees today, and the operator alerted me lighting struck 2x within 8 miles…. Their threshold is 10. They put the ball in my court (which I wasn’t thrilled about). We finished the job, but the shitstorm of possibilities in my imagination was not good. Moving forward I will now default to their 10 mile rule I think. $580 is nothing to flinch at (for me at least) but the other potential is terrifying.
Last edited:
- Location
- Chardon, OH
In my experience at more than 80 TCC's, 10 miles is the bare minimum to suspend all aerial activity.
There is lots of info available about when to resume: time, distance, forecast, etc.
There is lots of info available about when to resume: time, distance, forecast, etc.
flushcut
Been here much more than a while
- Location
- Delavan, WI
10 miles is too close for me. 17 miles is my standard. But then again I have gotten caught while in the lift. 0% chance my ass.
Chris Schultz
Carpal tunnel level member
- Location
- Minturn
I’m no meteorologist, but I’m curious how lightning behaves at elevations, vs lower elevations, heat and humidity etc.
moss
Been here much more than a while
- Location
- Carlisle, Massachusetts, U.S.
Doppler radar is a good guide to where potential lightning is and where it’s going. I’ve timed departures out of trees many times by keeping an eye on the weather with a weather app that has Doppler functionality.
-AJ
-AJ
Chris Schultz
Carpal tunnel level member
- Location
- Minturn
Lightning while climbing a tree has always been on my radar, but I’d never considered the elevation of risk for lightning exposure doing tree work with a crane….
ghostice
Been here a while
If you Google lightning detector you'll get a bunch of stuff including handheld hardware and apps. We used to use something like this static detector for soccer tournaments. But I have seen, twice now in my lifetime, lightning come out of white whispy clouds I'd have never guessed held a lightning potential - in one case the strike started a D8 Cat on fire in a nearby field and in the other it kicked off a forest fire that burned a ridge near a resort area we were staying at last summer with the clan. Both cases clear blue skies, light winds and one or two whispy little clouds. Be careful out there. I'd tend to default now to the 17 mile range talked about above. Scary thing is sparks from the sky.
Jehinten
Been here much more than a while
- Location
- Evansville
Typically you don't have to call it for the day, at least around here a storm will pass relatively quickly. If it's one of those 60+ min storms your better off calling it a day and keeping the crane on the clock for a storm job.
I was on one the other day climbing in a storm damaged Maple as another storm rolled through. Operator wanted to get his boom down, so I tied into him real quick (my tie-in in the tree was good for positioning but not amazing) bombed out, and he cabled up/swung over the house and set his boom down in the front yard.
Once it had passed He just boomed back up and finished the tree.
RogerM
Carpal tunnel level member
- Location
- Louisville,KY USA
Is there any validity to counting the seconds when you see a flash to the sound of thunder to roughly calculate miles?
radar on the phone is the tool now. 5-10 miles away is my comfort zone. Luckily not in a scenario where lightning is the difference between profit margins...humbly... definitely have been.
radar on the phone is the tool now. 5-10 miles away is my comfort zone. Luckily not in a scenario where lightning is the difference between profit margins...humbly... definitely have been.
Steve Connally
Been here much more than a while
- Location
- Suffolk, Virginia
I can't site the standard without looking it up but I've read it over a pissing contest with somebody I was subbing for. The OSHA standard says any lightning within 5 miles of the cranes location shuts operations down for 60 minutes from the last lightning strike. Weather Underground and Storm Radar ap have live lightning for premium subscribers.
Chris Schultz
Carpal tunnel level member
- Location
- Minturn
@Steve Connally whats your threshold for you/r equipment? Do you go off that OSHA standard, or…….
Steve Connally
Been here much more than a while
- Location
- Suffolk, Virginia
There's nothing I recall seeing in my owners manual about distance so I go with OSHA.
evo
Been here much more than a while
- Location
- My Island, WA
I’ve been about 100’ from a strike. Nothing in the world is like it you can feel the sound of the arc and the thunder doesn’t sound like thunder but all the worlds sounds getting sucked out in a vacuum and rushing back in at the same instant.
