Woman's Terrifying Selfie Shows How Close Couple Were To Being Hit By Lightning

A woman had no idea how close she was to being hit by lightning until she looked back at a selfie she took.

Sophie Pass, 33, visited the north of Scotland with her partner Richard, 33, for a wild swimming trip last weekend, when the area was hit by heavy thunderstorms.

However, the pair didn't realise how close they had come to being hit by lightning until they looked at a photo they'd taken.

Sophie, from Edinburgh, said: "Whilst on holiday, we had an amazing day up in north Scotland wild swimming.

Media Scotland

"The water was calm, a breeze to keep the midges away, a good combination of sun and light cloud, stunning wildlife and scenery - just perfect conditions!

"After finishing our swim, we decided to go for a stroll around the loch to finish off the day, which is a perfect spot for a selfie with such amazing views.

"Due to the screen brightness/distance we had not idea when taking this picture how much danger we were actually in."

Sophie decided to get a lochside selfie with Richard and whipped out her camera, shortly before their hair began to stand on end.

She added: "About a minute or so after this photo, Richard noticed that my hair was completely standing on end.

"I couldn't feel a thing, and it was only then that I noticed his hair was also on end.

"At this stage the weather was fairly calm, there was a bit of drizzle, but nothing looking too ominous.

Media Scotland

"Our gut instinct and our high school-level physics however made us suspect this probably really wasn't a good thing and we were in a bit of a dangerous situation, so quickly headed back to our car - letting the other six or so walkers on the beach know what we were experiencing as we went.

"All other walkers had their hoods up so weren't experiencing the same hair rising, but followed our lead and headed back to their cars.

"Whilst a heavy shower hit while everybody was in their cars, there was not thunder and lightning."

Sophie and Richard's hair-raising experience was caused by the static electricity that is present in an area when lightning is going to strike nearby.

Sophie added: "It was only when in the car that we looked at the selfie and noticed it was already happening at that stage.

"After some Googling, we have a very good idea of how unbelievably lucky we both are to still be here and safe - along with everybody else on the beach."

National Geographic writes on the phenomenon: "If your hair stands up in a storm, it could be a bad sign that positive charges are rising through you, reaching toward the negatively charged part of the storm.

"That's not a good sign! Your best bet is to get yourself immediately indoors."

Topics: Weather, UK News, Scotland

Claire Reid

Claire is a journalist at LADbible who, after dossing around for a few years, went to Liverpool John Moores University. She graduated with a degree in Journalism and a whole load of debt. When not writing words in exchange for money she is usually at home watching serial killer documentaries surrounded by cats. You can contact Claire at [email protected]

@ClaireReid19