Yesterday's afternoon thunderstorms claimed the life of a NJ man in Newark while a cricket player in Brooklyn was seriously injured. In Marine Park, Brooklyn, Patrick Gibson had been playing cricket when the storm broke out: The Daily News reports that he may have lagged to collect equipment. A witness said, "His pants were burned. His tongue was out of his mouth and his eyes were rolled back in his head." Gibson had a heart attack and is currently in critical condition at Beth-Israel Medical Center. And in Newark, according to the Star-Ledger, four men were seeking refuge from the rain in a wooded area behind an apartment complex. All were struck by lightning: One died, while another remains in critical condition; the other two men suffered burns but are stable.





Even God gets frustrated trying to figure out what the he'll is going on when watching cricket.
When was the last time someone died from a lightning strike in New York City?
One of the benefits of NYC, fewer storms, but great tall, safe places to watch lightning.
A few people get struck every year in NYC. Just a few years ago, a young guy was killed on his rooftop in SOHO by a strike. Lightning strikes are alot more common than you ever hear about, check out the database:
http://www.struckbylightning.org/news/dispIncidentdb.cfm