Des Moines, Iowa – Iowa emergency officials are using the winter months to reinforce lightning safety awareness after 21 people across the United States were killed by lightning in 2025, the highest annual total since 2019.
According to the National Weather Service and the National Lightning Safety Council, most lightning fatalities last year occurred during outdoor activities such as farming, construction, yard work, sports, and recreation near water. While Iowa did not record a lightning-related death in 2025, officials stress that the state remains vulnerable once thunderstorm season returns.
Lightning risk in Iowa typically increases from late spring through summer, especially during afternoon and evening storms that develop along cold fronts moving across the Plains and Midwest. Open farmland, athletic fields, job sites, and rural roadways can leave people exposed when storms build quickly with little warning.
State and local officials say winter is the ideal time to strengthen safety habits ahead of 2026. If thunder is heard anywhere in Iowa, residents should move indoors immediately to a substantial building or enclosed vehicle. Open fields, isolated trees, farm equipment, metal structures, and bodies of water significantly increase the risk of being struck.
Emergency management leaders emphasize that early action saves lives. Lightning safety outreach is expected to ramp up statewide as warmer weather approaches, with the goal of keeping Iowa residents prepared, informed, and safe throughout the next thunderstorm season.
