Categories: Guinness World Record

Meet the Man who Survived More Lightning Strikes Than Anyone Alive | PICTURES

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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Khushi Kumari

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.

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.

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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Khushi Kumari
Published by Khushi Kumari