Meet Roy C. Sullivan, a former park ranger from Virginia, USA, who holds the incredible and unfortunate world record for being struck by lightning seven times in his lifetime. He became known as the “Human Lightning Conductor.”
A single lightning strike is an immensely powerful force of nature, carrying hundreds of millions of volts and thousands of amps of electrical current. To survive even one strike is rare; to survive seven is absolutely astonishing.
Roy Cleveland Sullivan was an American park ranger in Shenandoah National Park in Virginia. Between 1942 and 1977, Sullivan was claimed to have been struck by lightning on seven occasions, surviving all of them. For this reason, he gained the nicknames “Human Lightning Conductor”… pic.twitter.com/vvM2AxkVRs
— Keith Griffin (@KeithGDejay) November 17, 2025
Seven Strikes, Seven Scars
Roy Sullivan’s attraction to lightning began in 1942 and continued for over three decades, resulting in a unique collection of injuries:
1942: His first strike caused him to lose a big toenail.
1969: The second strike burned off his eyebrows.
July 1970: He suffered a seared left shoulder.
April 16, 1972: His hair was set on fire.
August 7, 1973: Just one year later, his new hair was re-fired, and his legs were badly seared.
June 5, 1976: This strike injured his ankle.
June 25, 1977: His final recorded strike left him with burns to his chest and stomach.
After the fourth strike, people began to avoid him, fearing they might be struck themselves simply by being near him. He often joked that he was simply trying to do his job, which involved being outdoors during storms.
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Roy C. Sullivan: Horrible Death
Despite surviving seven terrifying encounters with nature’s most powerful electrical force, Roy Sullivan’s life ended tragically in September 1983.
Roy Sullivan, an American park ranger, was struck by lightning 7 times between 1942 and 1977. He survived all of them and was nicknamed ‘Human Lightning Rod’. He’s recognized by the Guinness World records as the person struck by lightning the most number of times. pic.twitter.com/LD8JQ2MABh
— Creepy.org (@creepydotorg) February 14, 2024
He did not die from lightning but by his own hand, reportedly because he was rejected in love. The man who defied the odds seven times succumbed to heartbreak.
Roy Sullivan’s story remains a fascinating and sad piece of history, cementing his place as the only person in the world to be struck by lightning a record seven times.
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