Lightning ‘underrated killer.’ Where Polk County ranks amid the lightning capital of US

(This story was updated to add new information and to correct a list by Florida county on lightning flash density.)

Lightning kills about 20 people in the United States each year, and hundreds more are severely injured, according to the National Weather Service.

The numbers became real when a Colorado man was hit by lightning in New Smyrna Beach June 20 as he stood in ankle-deep water. Initially in critical condition after being hospitalized, the 29-year-old man − in Florida for his honeymoon − died from the lightning strike the next day…

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