Lightning, El Paso
- When
- August 19, 3:00 PM MST
- Where
- El Paso County, Fountain
- Injuries
- 1 direct, 0 indirect
- Reported by
- NEWSPAPER
- Coordinates
- 38.832, -104.526 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Lightning Strike in Colorado, August 19, 1998
A lightning strike injured Larry Phelts, 28, while he was working out in a field near the town of Fountain. Mr.
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
- 1
- 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 PUB wrote it up.
A lightning strike injured Larry Phelts, 28, while he was working out in a field near the town of Fountain. Mr. Phelts was leaning against his tractor when the lightning hit, causing him to lose consciousness briefly and to have a seizure. He sustained a first degree burn on his side and complained of tingling.
The radar
The Pueblo radar (KPUX), 51 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 22:00 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
- Hail and Damaging Winds in Nebraska, August 19, 1998
- Hail and Damaging Winds in Oklahoma, August 19, 1998
- Damaging Wind in Louisiana, August 19, 1998
- Flood in Wyoming, August 19, 1998
- Flash Flood and Hail in Arkansas, August 19, 1998
- Flooding and Hail in Minnesota, August 19 to 20, 1998
- High Wind and Heavy Rain in Alaska, August 19 to 20, 1998
- Hail and Damaging Wind in South Dakota, August 19, 1998
- Hail in Colorado, August 19, 1998
- Flash Flooding and Hail in North Carolina, August 19, 1998
- Hail and Damaging Wind in South Dakota, August 19, 1998
- Flash Flood in Texas, August 19, 1998
More
Every storm in Colorado in 1998Every state in 1998This day in weather historyWarnings in Colorado, August 1998
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: 5661315.