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Student Death Prompts Schools To Install Lightning Predictors
Wednesday, Apr 23, 2008 - 04:09 PM Updated: 06:41 PM
Oakbrook shared their research about the Thorguard Integrated Lightning Prediction and Warning System with other area schools just two weeks ago. Dorman High School in Spartanburg District 6 installed one too.
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Save This Page For the past thirty years, lightning has been to blame for killing an average of 62 people a year, according to the National Weather Service. In 2007, one of those deaths involved a student in the Upstate. Since then two schools in Spartanburg County have installed state-of-the-art lightning predictor systems.
Just over a month ago, Oakbrook Preparatory invested in the system which can give up to 20 minutes advance warning of a lightning strike. Last August, 17- year old Alex Holbein, a student at Oakbrook, was struck and killed by lightning while at soccer practice. Oakbrook Headmaster Steve Smith shared his research about the Thorguard “Integrated Lightning Prediction and Warning System” with other area schools and just two weeks ago, Dorman High School in Spartanburg District 6 installed one too. "We can't control the forces of nature…but what we can do is try to give them the best safety features that are possible." Dorman Head Football coach David Gutshall says the toughest decision he makes during practice on a rainy days is when to get 180 athletes off the field. He says taking some of the human element out of the decision-making will help give him peace of mind. "And I think it's going to make parents feel better, because they will know we are doing everything we can to protect the young men and women at Dorman High School," says Gutshall.
The systems can also be programmed to detect tornados and be used as an emergency notification system for an event like a gunman on campus. Thorguard tells News Channel 7 the systems cost between $10,000 - $15,000.
Oakbrook Preparatory Website: http://www.oakbrookprep.org/
Dorman High School Website: http://www.dormanhigh.org/
Spartanburg District 6 Website: http://www.spartanburg6.k12.sc.us/index.php
National Weather Service Lightning Safety: http://www.lightningsafety.noaa.gov/
Thorguard Lightning Prediction and Warning Systems: http://www.thorguard.com/