Lightning, Gosper
- When
- June 21, 2:30 AM CST
- Where
- Gosper County, Smithfield
- Property damage
- $500,000
- Coordinates
- 40.515, -99.831 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Lightning Strike in Nebraska, June 21, 1996
Lightning struck the St. Johns Catholic Church and started it on fire.
Where it happened
Every event with a place to put it; 1 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.
- Tornadoes
- Tropical storms and surge
- Floods
- Wind
- Hail
- Winter weather
- Heat and drought
- Cold
- Fire, smoke and dust
- Marine and coastal
- Other
The toll
- Deaths
- 0
- Injuries
- 0
- Property damage
- $500,000
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 1
Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.
What happened
The episode as NWS GID wrote it up.
Lightning struck the St. Johns Catholic Church and started it on fire. The resulting fire completely destroyed the building.
The radar
The Grand Island radar (KUEX), 120 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 08:31 UTC.
Event by event
1 lightning. Local standard time, as filed.
What these are
- Lightning
- A lightning strike that killed, injured or caused damage.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
The same day elsewhere
- Tornado in Michigan, June 21, 1996
- Flash Flood in Michigan, June 21 to 22, 1996
- Flood in Iowa, June 21 to 22, 1996
- Flash Flood in Iowa, June 21, 1996
- Flash Flood in Michigan, June 21 to 22, 1996
- Flash Flood in Michigan, June 21 to 22, 1996
- Damaging Wind in Kansas, June 21, 1996
- Tornado in Michigan, June 21, 1996
- Damaging Wind in Kansas, June 21, 1996
- Flash Flood in Michigan, June 21 to 22, 1996
- Flash Flood in Michigan, June 21 to 22, 1996
- Damaging Wind in Kansas, June 21, 1996
More
Every storm in Nebraska in 1996Every state in 1996This day in weather historyWarnings in Nebraska, June 1996
Sources
NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5551068.