A woman has miraculously survived being struck by lightning all due to her shoes.
Caroline Blake had been standing by her kitchen sink in County Offaly, Ireland, on Tuesday when there was a "massive explosion" and "the smell of burning" she told RTÉ Radio 1.
As she put a spoon down in the sink, "sparks came out of it."
"It kind of set me back a bit on my feet and I became a bit disoriented and didn't know what was happening. I could hear all this, you know, like electricity. I could hear the buzzing of all this electricity," she told the radio station.
A stock photo shows a huge bolt of lightning. A woman in Ireland was struck by lightning during severe storms on June 13. A stock photo shows a huge bolt of lightning. A woman in Ireland was struck by lightning during severe storms on June 13. Kyle Benne/GettyIreland has seen severe weather in recent days. Lightning strikes, hail, and strong winds battered the west and southwest of the country on June 13.
Blake told RTE Radio 1 the sensation was "so hard to explain," as it happened very quickly, but in the moment, it "seemed to go on forever."
Blake, being alone at the time wasn't sure what to do after the ordeal. She said she just about had the strength to ring her husband who started making his way home.
"But the storm became very intense at that stage and I was worried. I didn't want any of them driving because of what happened to me," Blake told Radio 1.
Luckily, her daughter arrived shortly after. She was taken to the doctor, who deemed the woman very lucky.
The doctor told her it was her rubber-soled shoes that saved her.
"I had my runners on. So I said that's what saved me and the doctor even told me that would save you, you know, so I was so happy. They kept me in for a few hours and everything was okay and they gave me a few tablets," the woman told the radio station.
Rubber is a poor conductor of electricity. This is because it is an insulator and does not allow the passage of electricity through it.
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It is rare for a person to be struck by lightning, but it can happen. In the U.S. for example, over 300 people are struck by lightning each year.
Out of this, 50 result in fatalities, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Lightning strikes can burn the body and even cause long-term disabilities, such as seizures.
Blake told Radio 1 that she felt "hungover" the following day.
"That's the only way I can explain it, just a bad headache," she said.
She is also suffering from some burns on her wrist, and a sore eye, the news outlet reported.
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