School system invests in lightning protection
Officials at the Orange County (Fla.) Public School System know first-hand how destructive lightning can be. Between 1992 and 1994, lightning damage cost the district more than $1 million, according to Rick Thompson, a technician who also serves as lightning protection coordinator for the district.
Waterbridge Elementary School, which is situated on the highest ground in Orlando, incurred thousands of dollars worth of damage to video cassette recorders, computers, the fire alarm and the intercom system. Lightning also damaged 32 air-conditioning compressors at another school building, leaving it without air conditioning for more than two weeks in June.
At Tildenville Elementary, lightning was not so much an expensive problem as it was an inconvenience. Whenever lightning struck Tildenville, a heating technician was sent out to reset or repair the heating circuits on a boiler, leaving the school cafeteria without critically needed hot water until the repairs were made.
By late 1994, when Thompson joined the staff, school officials knew something had to be done. Surge protectors, which guard against power “spikes” or “impulses” from the electric company, often are ineffective against lightning, and their effectiveness decreases each time they are used, Thompson says.
Some equipment, such as VCRs and computers, can be disconnected when a severe storm is approaching, but, as Thompson notes, “There are some things you just can’t turn off.” Moreover, unplugging appliances and equipment or flipping switches in a fuse box every time an electrical storm comes through is impractical, since the Orlando area gets more than 100 such storms in a typical year.
To solve the problem, the district purchased four lightning detection systems (two Model 100s and two Model 1000s) from Rabun Labs, Plant City, Fla. The equipment is capable of detecting lightning while it is still two to five miles away.
When the lightning’s intensity reaches a certain level, the system automatically disconnects or isolates AC power and telephone lines as well as coaxial cables coming from the outside. After the storm has subsided, the system automatically restores all connections. Since installing the lightning detection equipment, the Tildenville Elementary has dramatically reduced the incidence of lightning damage to its equipment.
In addition to his facilities duties in the Orange County district, Thompson is actively involved in educating other school officials about protecting persons and property from the dangers of lightning. Upon completing an intensive two-day training class at the Lightning Safety Institute, Louisville, Colo., Thompson has begun a lightning safety educational program with funding from the Florida Board of Education.