Why you should never take a shower during a thunderstorm

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Is it true that you can get electrocuted while showering during a thunderstorm?

With peak thunderstorm season upon us, it may be wise to heed the age-old advice against showering during a thunderstorm, experts said.

The chance of being struck by lightning in general is low — less than 1 in a million in the United States, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Lightning strikes a few hundred Americans each year — about 90 percent of whom survive – most often in the summertime and most commonly during outdoor activities.

The chance of being struck indoors is even lower, but it is possible to be zapped during water-related chores or self-care activities such as showering. “If lightning is traveling through the wiring or through the plumbing, you could get that shock,” said Chris Vagasky, meteorologist with the National Lightning Safety Council.

When lightning strikes, the electrical current travels 360 degrees in less than a second. Well-constructed buildings, including houses, often act as a cage and protect inhabitants as the electric current travels through electrical wiring or plumbing and goes into the ground – which is why people should avoid contact with those pathways during a thunderstorm, experts said.

If the electrical current comes into contact with plumbing, particularly metal pipes, both the pipe and the water in it act as conductors, experts added. Anyone touching the plumbing or water during a lightning strike could experience a nonfatal electric shock or – in some cases – fatal electrocution.

Plastic pipes, which are used in many homes, may decrease the risk, but “water remains a good conductor of electricity, meaning that a possibility of electrocution still exists,” said Keith Sherburn, severe weather program coordinator for the National Weather Service.

Because lightning-related injuries are not well tracked, experts said it is difficult to know how many people have been shocked while showering. But, Sherburn said, none of the documented lightning-related fatalities in nearly two decades in the United States have been associated with these activities.

Not only is there a risk while showering, but experts also caution people to avoid other water-related activities such as washing hands, clothes or dishes.

The concern is not with rain but with thunder as it signals lightning. People 10 to 15 miles from the eye of the storm can hear thunder and be struck by lightning, Vagasky said.

“That’s why we always say, ‘When thunder roars, go indoors,’ because if you can hear the thunder, you are close enough to be struck by lightning,” he said.

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What else you should know

Electrical wiring poses a similar risk during a thunderstorm as a lightning bolt that strikes a home can travel through the wiring to any device that is plugged in, such as an appliance, game controller, landline phone, desktop computer, or wireless devices that are charging at the time, the CDC said.

In 2022, five people were killed in Brazil while using smartphones that were plugged into electrical outlets when lightning struck, according to a study examining lightning safety indoors.

Additionally, “there may be undocumented injuries” tied to using electronic devices that are wired or plugged in, Sherburn said.

The bottom line: Although the risk of electric shock or electrocution while showering in a thunderstorm is low, it is not zero, experts said.

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