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TIA Lightning Detection, Warning System Evolves

Tribune photo by JULIE BUSCH

Southwest Airlines employees unload a jet at Tampa International Airport. The airport has upgraded the system it uses to warn workers of the risk of lightning strikes.

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By KEITH MORELLI | The Tampa Tribune

Published: July 14, 2008

TAMPA - Plunked down smack in the lightning-rich capital of the nation and with an enterprise that depends on the kindness of the weather, Tampa International Airport has made a business out of tracking arcs of electricity flashing through the air.

Airport spokeswoman Brenda Geoghagan says the airport owns a system that airlines use to gauge the frequency of lightning strikes and whether it's safe to have employees out under airplanes.

The system is mainly for their safety, she said.

Baggage handlers on the tarmac loading and unloading bags, caterers loading drinks and snacks and workers pumping fuel into the aircrafts are susceptible to being shocked when thunderstorms pass by, she said.

"We've upgraded the system," Geoghagan said. "It's all about safety. It's a better tool for airlines to use to gauge lightning in the area."

This time of year, lightning is a frequent flyer at the airport.

"Here in Florida, we are part of that lightning capital of the world," she said, "especially during those summer afternoon thunderstorms."

Thunderstorms roll over West Central Florida 90 to 100 days a year, and that has earned the region the lightning capital moniker.

This month, more bolts of lightning flash across the Florida skies than any other month. The bolts occasionally wreak havoc and sometimes death. In July 2007, 11 people died after being struck by lightning, which can travel in excess of 90,000 miles a second and come in at 50,000 degrees Fahrenheit.

Lightning has not injured anyone at the airport since the 1980s, said Rob Burr, airport director of operations.

A lightning detection system has been in place for more than 10 years and has been upgraded a couple of time, he said.

The main problem, however, was not detecting conditions that are ripe for strikes, it was losing the link between the communications center and the airlines during storms.

So in April, a $21,000 upgrade was made to ensure that doesn't happen.

The airport owns the detection system, but it is used by the airlines, he said. The system tracks lightning in the area and analyzes conditions to calculate the probability of lightning at the airport. If the probability is high, a red alert automatically goes out and a siren sounds and lights flash on the tarmac, warning workers to get out of harm's way.

When dangerous conditions subside, the alert system goes back to green and workers can return to their jobs, he said.

"It's for the safety of the people working the aircraft," he said. "Parking it, refueling, and handling the baggage."

Airplanes that are refueling actually become attractive to lightning, he said. The flow of the fuel has a polarizing effect that tends to draw strikes, putting everyone working on the tarmac near an airplane in danger, he said.

No one has been hit, he said, but there have been close calls.

"People have felt the tingle" when lightning has crackled nearby, he said.

The original system, installed in 1996, cost $176,000, said Pat Campbell, deputy director of maintenance. Campbell has overseen the upgrades to the system.

He said the upgrades included 20 siren and a flashing light systems installed outside the airsides that alert workers immediately of dangerous weather conditions.

Flight delays are not uncommon because of the danger of lightning at the airport.

In 2007, officials said, flights were delayed a total of nearly 143 hours by lightning. Nearly 104 hours of that occurred from July through September, the prime thunderstorm season.

This year, flights have been delayed 44 hours, officials said.

Florida leads the nation in lightning strikes, averaging 26 strikes for every square mile in the state. In the area from Tampa to Cape Canaveral, lightning can strike every square mile up to 40 times in a year.

From 1998 through 2007, 74 people died in Florida because of lightning strikes, and that leads the nation. Colorado held a distant second place with 27 deaths.

About 9 of 10 people struck by lightning survive, but one-quarter of the survivors suffer long-lasting physical and mental problems.

Reporter Keith Morelli can be reached at (813) 259-7760 or kmorelli@tampatrib.com.

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