Lightning, Dallas
- When
- February 19, 12:20 PM CST to 12:21 PM CST
- Where
- Dallas County, Hutchins
- Deaths
- 1 direct, 0 indirect
- Coordinates
- 32.767, -96.778 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Lightning Strike in Texas, February 19, 1997
A truck driver, who was involved in a two car automobile accident, was struck and killed by lightning after leaving his vehicle to check on the occupants of the other car.
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
- 1
- Injuries
- 0
- Property damage
- None recorded
- 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 FWD wrote it up.
A truck driver, who was involved in a two car automobile accident, was struck and killed by lightning after leaving his vehicle to check on the occupants of the other car.
The radar
The Dallas/Ft Worth radar (KFWS), 54 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 18:18 UTC.
Event by event
1 lightning. Local standard time, as filed.
The people who died
As the offices recorded each death: direct deaths were caused by the weather itself, indirect ones by something it set in motion.
| Event | Date | Age | Sex | Where | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lightning, Dallas | 1997-02-19 | 50 | Male | Outside/Open Areas | Direct |
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 Iowa, February 19, 1997
- Flash Flood in Texas, February 19, 1997
- Flooding in Nebraska, February 19 to 22, 1997
- Flash Flood in Texas, February 19 to 20, 1997
- Flash Flood in Iowa, February 19 to 20, 1997
- Heavy Rain in Texas, February 19 to 21, 1997
- Winter Storm in Utah, February 19 to 20, 1997
- Heat in New Jersey, February 19 to 22, 1997
- Heat in Pennsylvania, February 19 to 22, 1997
- Heat in Maryland, February 19 to 22, 1997
- Heat in Delaware, February 19 to 22, 1997
- High Wind in Massachusetts, February 19 to 20, 1997
More
Every storm in Texas in 1997Every state in 1997This day in weather historyWarnings in Texas, February 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: 5587905.