Lightning in Maine

Events

215

Deaths

5

Injuries

73

Damage

$8.5 million

• Lightning Strike in Maine, July 18, 20082 deaths · 1 eventA man and a woman were killed while outside a home in Standish when lightning struck a nearby tree and travelled along the ground. The two had gone outside in a storm to retrieve a pair of sunglasses the family dog had taken from a child when the lightning struck.
• Hail and Damaging Winds in Maine, August 25, 20071 death · 1 injured · 52 kt wind · 5 eventsThunderstorms developed across the region during the afternoon and evening in the vicinity of a nearly stationary frontal boundary. Several of the thunderstorms became severe...producing damaging winds and large hail.
• Lightning Strike in Maine, July 4, 20001 death · 1 event
• Lightning Strike in Maine, June 12, 20051 death · 1 eventA Rhode Island man was struck and killed by lightning while fishing from a boat in Little North Pond in Rome. A second man on the boat was unharmed and tried to administer CPR, but was unable to revive the victim.
• Hail and Damaging Winds in Maine, July 6, 2011$1.0 million · 1 in hail · 24 eventsStrong heating ahead of an approaching cold front generated moderate to strong instability. Instability increased as the front neared and a large line formed ahead of the front... with numerous smaller cells forming out in front of the main line.
• Lightning Strikes in Maine, July 2, 2009$1.5 million · 3 eventsLightning from thunderstorms that moved through coastal sections of Maine was responsible for a number of fires in York and Lincoln Counties.
• Tornadoes and Hail in Maine, July 21, 20101 injured · $70,000 · EF1 · 32 eventsLow pressure crossing southern Canada pushed a trailing cold front toward northern New England during the late afternoon and evening.
• Damaging Winds and Lightning Strikes in Maine, July 23, 2002$450,000 · 50 kt wind · 10 eventsScattered thunderstorms moving through western and central Maine knocked down trees and power lines and lightning from the storms damaged buildings and caused several fires. Trees were reported down in Skowhegan, Fairfield, Chesterville, Cumberland, and Belmont.
• Tornado and Damaging Winds in Maine, May 31, 20021 injured · $60,000 · F1 · 9 eventsA line of severe thunderstorms moving through Maine produced severe winds that downed trees and power lines throughout the western part of the state. About 30,000 customers lost electrical service during the storms.
• Lightning Strike in Maine, August 3, 2008$300,000 · 1 eventLightning struck a home in Newcastle and ignited a fire that destroyed the residence.
• Lightning Strike in Maine, July 3, 2009$300,000 · 1 eventLightning ignited a fire that severely damaged a home on the Isle au Haut. The house was in the process of being remodeled and was just weeks away from being complete.
• Hail and Damaging Winds in Maine, July 15, 2007$135,000 · 1.75 in hail · 14 eventsSevere thunderstorms produced large hail and damaging winds across portions of southwest Maine during the afternoon of July 15th.
• Lightning Strike in Maine, March 29, 1997$225,000 · 1 eventA cluster of early spring thunderstorms with powerful lightning damaged a church, three homes, and the State Police barracks in Gray. One of the homes sustained more than $200,000 in damages from a fire which was caused by the lightning stroke.
• Lightning Strike in Maine, July 11, 20012 injured · $100,000 · 1 eventTwo communication workers at the York County Dispatch Center in Alfred were struck by lightning while working at their 911 consoles.
• Lightning Strike in Maine, August 3, 2004$200,000 · 1 eventLightning struck and ignited a fire in a large barn that housed a small high-end furniture manufacturing company. The fire destroyed the barn and heavily damaged the attached 1899 home.
• Lightning Strike in Maine, August 2, 2006$200,000 · 1 eventLightning struck nearby and apparently followed underground electrical wires into a home in Falmouth. The lightning reportedly ignited several fires in the home and caused an estimate $200,000 in damage.
• Lightning Strike in Maine, June 10, 2008$200,000 · 1 eventLightning was listed as the probable cause of a fire that destroyed a home in Kingfield. The fire apparently smouldered for about 12 hours before igniting. Damage was estimated $200,000.
• Lightning Strike in Maine, June 27, 2009$200,000 · 1 eventLightning struck a century-old home in Rumford and caused a fire that destroyed the residence. Damage was estimated at about $200,000.
• Hail and Damaging Winds in Maine, September 27, 2007$120,000 · 50 kt wind · 9 eventsSevere thunderstorms developed in southeast New Hampshire and quickly moved into southwestern Maine on the morning of the 27th producing large hail and damaging winds.
• Lightning Strike in Maine, October 3, 2009$175,000 · 1 eventLightning struck a well outside a home in North Yarmouth and is believed to have followed underground wiring to the home where it ignited a fire in the basement. The fire then completely destroyed the home.
• Lightning Strikes in Maine, August 5, 20021 injured · $100,000 · 2 eventsAn 18-year old man was slightly injured as he leaned on a metal counter top in a Wiscasset restaurant when lightning struck the restaurant. The lightning, which struck an outside corner of the building, also destroyed the motor of a convection fryer.
• Lightning Strike in Maine, June 24, 1999$150,000 · 1 eventLightning stuck a home in West Cumberland and ignited a fire which completely destroyed the recently renovated residence.
• Lightning Strike in Maine, July 31, 2014$150,000 · 1 eventLightning from a thunderstorm sparked a fire in Naples.
• Lightning Strike in Maine, February 22, 19977 injured · 1 eventVery rare wintertime thunderstorms with powerful lightning struck the Moosehead Lake area, as well as much of northern and western Maine. Numerous positive strokes of lightning occurred.
• Damaging Winds and Lightning Strike in Maine, June 23 to 24, 2002$110,000 · 50 kt wind · 3 eventsSevere thunderstorms moving through western Maine knocked over trees in Mexico and Gilead in Oxford County on the evening of the 23rd. Later that night, lightning struck a former chicken barn in Limerick igniting a fire that destroyed the barn and equipment inside.

Lightning everywhereEvery kind of event in Maine

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.