Air traffic controller hit by lightening
09.07.09
An air traffic controller at Newcastle Airport was hit by lightning while working 130ft above the ground, the Journal reports. Vikki Cole, 26, was in the airport's new control tower during an electrical storm on Monday when lightening hit the building, passed through the room and shot up her arm. Remarkably, after a check-up she returned to work and completed her shift!
Moments before she was injured, six lightening bolts struck the ground at different points around the airport. Ms Cole told the newspaper: ‘We were looking out to see which end of the runway to direct a plane in to land. I was using a touch screen phone to advise the radar room when lightening hit the tower. My finger was in contact with the screen when it hit, I heard a crackle and I felt a shock.’ Luckily, she only suffered a slight headache, saying: ‘It was a totally surreal experience.’
No equipment in the tower was damaged, but the emergency alarm was set off by the strike. An airport spokesman said: ‘The lightning struck the glass of the tower and she the piece of equipment she was holding acted as a conductor. She had been at the top of the tower relaying weather conditions down to the radar room. It was a very minor shock that caused tingling in her arm, a headache and made her feel unwell. She visited our occupational health department for a check up, then went to work.’
Add to: del.icio.us | Digg it | Newsvine | NowPublic | Reddit
To book a newcastle airport hotel or newcastle airport car park at the lowest price click on these links to newcastle airport car parking and newcastle airport hotel price comparison pages.
