Lightning — Richland, South Carolina

2025-07-12 · near Pontiac Airstrip Arp, Richland, South Carolina

Event narrative

Columbia-Richland Fire Department reported responding to a 2-alarm fire caused by a lightning strike in the 1100 block of Bradford Ridge Lane. Two homes were left uninhabitable, with a third sustaining minor damage. All occupants escaped with no injuries.

Wider weather episode

A weak shortwave along the apex of an upper ridge and some weak surface troughing brought isolated convection across the Midlands in SC. Instability was modest with weak organizing shear, but by the late afternoon moderate DCAPE was seen in the central Midlands as deep mixing occurred. This led to a severe thunderstorm in southern Kershaw County that caused tree damage. There was also a reported 2-alarm fire in Richland County due to a lightning strike.

View location on OpenStreetMap → (34.1231, -80.8851)

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1271342. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.