NorCal Slammed with Hundreds of Dangerous Lightning Strikes With More on the Way

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A little bit of last night's action at the Sundial. Torn between getting rest and going out, I made the decision to leave a little too late and barely caught the tail end of the storm. Thankfully I was still rewarded for my efforts as I captured a few strikes before the storm moved too far north!

A post shared by Matt Haynie (@matthayniephotography) on Aug 10, 2019 at 5:28am PDT

The skies were bright in some parts of Northern California Friday night, with hundreds of lightning strikes filling the air and causing small wildfires in the wilderness.

Late-Friday night, the National Weather Service issued a Severe Thunderstorm Warning for Shasta and Tehama Counties as lightning filled the sky. On the North Coast, meteorologists counted over 280 lightning strikes in Mendocino, Del Norte, Humboldt and Trinity Counties.

Although the number of lightning strikes was high, the reports of fire caused by the strikes have been somewhat low, with firefighters responding to just a few in the Klamath National Forest. But with more lightning strikes forecast for Saturday, firefighters are on high alert.

Shower & thunderstorm chances continue through the day for the northern Sacramento Valley & northern mountains. Here's one model's forecast of possible timing. Take shelter indoors if a storm forms near you! #CAwx pic.twitter.com/w41Bszfv4b

— NWS Sacramento (@NWSSacramento) August 10, 2019

The NWS has forecast for the thunderstorms to continue of Saturday, lasting until around 7 pm. They have asked the public to remain indoors if the lightning persists and to stay away from tree and water.

Stay safe for the rest of the day, Northern California!