It's every weatherman's worst fear. Liu Xiaodong was reporting during a thunderstorm in the Chinese city of Dalian when he claims he was struck by lightning. In the clip from a live segment, you can see a flash of lightning and Liu's reaction, as he cringes and ducks out of the shot while his umbrella goes flying. But the lightning you see is actually quite a ways behind him, and isn't what struck him. Still, he claimed to Chinese newspaper The Paper — in a translation via The Sun — that he was indeed struck.
"I saw a yellow spark on my hand and the umbrella handle," he said. "Electricity travelled up my forearm and my hand was numb afterwards."
He did, however, grant that the video didn't show lightning striking him: "Had the video really captured the current hitting my hand," he added, "I probably wouldn't be standing here giving this interview."
What seems more likely, considering The Sun also reports his cameraman was struck, is that another flash of lightning hit right nearby to the two of them rather than struck them directly. Either way, you have to wonder if this was at all avoidable. I'm no weatherman, but maybe don't stand on a rooftop holding an umbrella during a lightning storm?
