A lightning strike during last week's storms on the summit of Mount Geras, in León, has left more than twenty cattle incinerated.
When the storm began, the cows were grazing on the highest part of Mount Geras, as they usually do. The area where the animals were grazing, owned by a farmer from Santa María de Ordás, is on the highest part of the mountain and is difficult to access. Therefore, it was not until the storm ceased that the farmer could reach the site, where he encountered the devastating event.
According to the neighbors, this is a completely extraordinary event since, generally, no animals are struck by lightning in the area.
This reminds us of what happened in Norway in 2016, where 323 reindeer lost their lives due to a lightning strike.
In these cases, the death of the animals is possibly due to the so-called “ground current,” as we already explained in the aforementioned article.
It is because of this type of event that it is necessary to protect farms and grazing areas with lightning protection systems, as animals in the open are very exposed to these misfortunes.
