Lightning, Oxford
- When
- September 13, 1:30 PM EST to 4:00 PM EST
- Where
- Oxford County, Countywide
- Coordinates
- 44.500, -70.757 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Lightning Strikes in Maine, September 13, 1997
Powerful lightning knocked out power to approximately 20,000 customers as thunderstorms moved through southwestern Maine. Most of the outages were in the Alfred, Sanford, Bridgton, and Augusta districts.
Where it happened
Every event with a place to put it; 5 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
- None recorded
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 5
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 GYX wrote it up.
Powerful lightning knocked out power to approximately 20,000 customers as thunderstorms moved through southwestern Maine. Most of the outages were in the Alfred, Sanford, Bridgton, and Augusta districts. Lightning also caused several fires in homes in the areas. At the State Police barracks in Gray, radio and phone equipment were knocked out, apparently due to an electrical surge caused by a nearby lightning bolt.
The radar
The Portland,ME radar (KGYX), 79 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 18:28 UTC.
Event by event
5 lightning. Local standard time, as filed.
Lightning, Androscoggin
- When
- September 13, 1:30 PM EST to 4:00 PM EST
- Where
- Androscoggin County, Countywide
- Coordinates
- 44.166, -70.206 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Lightning, Cumberland
- When
- September 13, 1:30 PM EST to 4:00 PM EST
- Where
- Cumberland County, Countywide
- Coordinates
- 43.806, -70.330 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Lightning, Kennebec
- When
- September 13, 1:30 PM EST to 4:00 PM EST
- Where
- Kennebec County, Countywide
- Coordinates
- 44.409, -69.767 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Lightning, York
- When
- September 13, 1:30 PM EST to 4:00 PM EST
- Where
- York County, Countywide
- Coordinates
- 43.429, -70.670 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
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
- Flash Flood in New Mexico, September 13, 1997
- Wildfire in California, September 13 to 15, 1997
- Lightning Strike in Massachusetts, September 13, 1997
- Flash Flood and Damaging Wind in Arizona, September 13, 1997
- High Surf in Hawaii, September 13 to 14, 1997
- Hail and Damaging Winds in Texas, September 13, 1997
- Damaging Winds in Oklahoma, September 13, 1997
- Damaging Winds in Oklahoma, September 13, 1997
- Waterspout in Florida, September 13, 1997
- Flash Flood in Kansas, September 13, 1997
- Waterspout in Florida, September 13, 1997
- Flash Flood in Missouri, September 13, 1997
More
Every storm in Maine in 1997Every state in 1997This day in weather historyWarnings in Maine, September 1997
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: 5625007, 5625008, 5625009, 5625010, 5625011.