Tags Posts tagged with "Lightning"

Lightning

Photo from National Oceananic and Atmospheric Administration.

A Northport man was struck by lightning in front of his home at 10:48 p.m. June 2 during a heavy thunderstorm.

Northport fire department officials said Jonathan Borriello, 29, went out to his front porch to get a better view of the thunderstorm and realized the U.S. flag was still being displayed. He took the flag down and placed it on the porch. He remained on the porch and a moment later, a tree about 11 feet away, was struck by a bolt of lightning. The bolt ricocheted and struck him on the left shoulder and arm, and he was thrown about twenty feet.

The Northport Police and Fire Departments responded to the scene. Police on the scene observed burn marks to the victim’s hands and he complained of tingling in his legs. According to Northport Fire Department Chief John Jacobsen, the victim was transported to Huntington Hospital via Northport Fire Rescue with non-life threating injuries. He was treated and released from the hospital.

Jonathan later stated that at the moment the bolt struck, there was an incredible white light and crashing sound, and then he was on the ground. He also reported that there are embers on the porch where he was standing.

The Northport Police would like to remind everyone that thunderstorms can be very dangerous and that you should remain inside a secure structure until the storm has passed.

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Kings Park's Jessica Hoyt tangles with an opponent. Photo by Desirée Keegan

One bolt of lightning cut short the Kings Park girls’ soccer team’s chances of remaining undefeated Friday afternoon.

Kings Park's Genevieve Carpenter breaks away with the ball. Photo by Desirée Keegan
Kings Park’s Genevieve Carpenter breaks away with the ball. Photo by Desirée Keegan

With 6:05 left on the clock, the referees saw lightning and immediately called the game as per Section XI rules, leaving Hauppauge ahead, 3-1, and ending the Kingsmen’s 12-game unbeaten streak.

“We’re playing very shorthanded — we’re down three starters, and they still played their butts off,” Kings Park head coach Bryan LoPalo said of his team. “We got girls filling in in positions they’re not comfortable in and they’re doing a pretty good job, but it’s a tough team that we just played.”

In the first half, with 21:53 left to play, senior forward and co-captain Genevieve Carpenter took a long shot from outside the right goal side, and as the Hauppauge goalkeeper came out of the box to make a save, the ball rolled past her and into the empty net for the early 1-0 lead despite Hauppauge dominating the time of possession up until that point.

Five minutes later, Hauppauge tied the game, 1-1, when Nicole Scudero scored off a foul kick. While Kings Park was still trying to set up blockers, Scudero saw an opportunity to take advantage of the Kingsmen’s scrambling and hit her mark with a straight shot to the top left corner of the net, past a diving Caroline Galdorisi.

Kings Park's Shakila Sevanan throws the ball into play. Photo by Desirée Keegan
Kings Park’s Shakila Sevanan throws the ball into play. Photo by Desirée Keegan

Coming into the second half like it was a new game, Carpenter had another early attempt, but couldn’t capitalize as her shot rebounded off the cage.

Again, minutes later, Hauppauge had its chance, but Lauren Mastandrea made sure her shot off a cross into the box just made it past a Kings Park defender who was guarding the goal after Galdorisi came out to attempt to make a save, giving the Eagles their first lead, 2-1.

With 6:22 left to play, Hauppauge made an attempt that was saved by Galdorisi but she couldn’t get a good grasp on the ball, and Scudero grabbed the rebound and sent it in for the 3-1 advantage. Galdorisi, a senior and co-captain, made nine saves on the evening.

“It’s a great team, they’re a very talented group, they’re just a little shorthanded right now and they’ll get it back together,” LoPalo said of his players. “They showed toughness, they showed heart. They don’t stop; they didn’t quit. We know what we’re doing, but it’s not our best game of the year.”

Kings Park's Noelle Perciballi winds up to strike the ball out of midfield. Photo by Desirée Keegan
Kings Park’s Noelle Perciballi winds up to strike the ball out of midfield. Photo by Desirée Keegan

Play was stopped just seconds later on account of the lightning, and with that it was up in the air as to whether or not Kings Park was still undefeated. As per Section XI on Tuesday, the results have officially counted. With the loss, the Kingsmen drop to 8-1-2 in League IV (9-1-3 overall) but are still top, while Hauppauge moves to second place (9-2-0).

Moving forward, LoPalo said he needs his team to remain healthy, in the hopes that it can make the playoff push he’s looking for.

“Hauppauge was giving us their all — they played hard and they played well,” LoPalo said. “But our goal is to be state champs. That’s always the goal. If we can stay healthy, we have a lot of ability and I think at this point in time, it’s just that our bench got shortened, so girls are playing more time than they really should have to.”

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A utility crew gets to work on Old Post Road in Port Jefferson after a storm wreaked havoc on the area. Photo by Elana Glowatz

Tuesday morning’s storm literally came out of the blue. The skies were clear and calm on Monday and residents were going about their summer, as they should.

Some may have even welcomed the news of pending thunderstorms and rain — we could use the shower. But then it hit.

By the time we woke up Tuesday morning, we were reminded just how fragile our environment is. Trees were in our streets. Traffic lights had gone black. Police were scrambling to make sense of the aftermath of what was a short but intense early-morning storm filled with heavy winds, rain, thunder and, in spots, hail.

We will spend the coming days digging ourselves out, as we always do in the wake of severe weather events. But let’s not just get back to business once the roads are cleared and the traffic lights flicker green, yellow and red once more.

This was a freak weather event. We did not have the courtesy of a week’s warning as we did during storms with names like Irene or Sandy. We did not see this one coming.

And now, we are all paying for it.

We are calling on our elected officials to use this severe storm as a catalyst to catapult environmentally focused legislation and reforms.

For example, we like to talk a lot about moving our power lines underground in order to save them from toppling trees. But the price tag is usually what puts that idea right back into our political pockets, stored away for another day. Well that day is fast approaching.

This summer has already had its fair share of gentle and not-so-gentle reminders that our environment is suffering. In June, we spent weeks discussing the causes and effects of low oxygen levels along our shores that left our waterfronts riddled with dead fish. The tragic event sparked a political debate over the Island’s environmental future but, again, we still await concrete action.

We are also calling on our legislators and our readers to use this storm as a reminder to stay on top of the greenery we all take pride in. Clean up your yards and have your trees routinely inspected and trimmed to ensure they can sustain the kinds of storms that catch us off guard. We can also stock up on nonperishable foods and batteries to ease the panic in a storm’s aftermath. There is always more we can do.

It’s time we come to terms with the notion that significant action is necessary, and is worth the financial investment. One way or another, we will end up paying in the long run. Let’s start paying now instead of the inevitable next time traffic lights go dark.