PlainHazard

Maine lightning

Every recorded lightning record since 1996 · 16 counties with a record

NOAA's Storm Events Database records 215 lightning records in Maine from 1996 through June 30, 2026, about 8.2 a year since 2000. The deadliest was the July 18, 2008 lightning in Cumberland County: 2 deaths. Maine ranks 31st of 52 states and territories by count and 25th of 51 per square mile.

Lightning in Maine, 1996 to 2026

Lightning records per year (NOAA Storm Events); 2026 to June 30, 2026.

  • recorded, no damage figure
  • under $1 million
  • $1 million or more
  • $10 million or more
  • $100 million or more, or 10 deaths
  • $1 billion or more, or 100 deaths
  • a year's colour: its recorded damage or deaths
  • a year with a death
Records
2151996 to June 30, 2026
A year since 2000
8.2average
Deaths
573 injuries
Damage, 2025 dollars
$13Mas filed
Busiest year
199927 records

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records through June 30, 2026; deaths and damage as filed, damage in 2025 dollars. Search the record at NCEI.

Are lightning records common in Maine?

Maine averages about 8.2 lightning records a year since 2000, 31st of 52 states and territories by count. The busiest year on record was 1999 (27). Per 10,000 square miles of land, Maine records 70 lightning records since 1996, 25th of 51 states and territories by that measure.

  1. 1. New Jersey 859
  2. 2. Delaware 744
  3. 3. Massachusetts 642
  4. 4. Rhode Island 571
  5. 5. Connecticut 353
  6. 6. Florida 331
  7. 7. Maryland 322
  8. 8. New Hampshire 232
  9. 9. Georgia 228
  10. 10. Puerto Rico 175
  11. 25. Maine 70

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records since 1996, per 10,000 square miles of land area (Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer; places under 1,000 square miles not ranked). Damage colours: Storm Events damage, 2025 dollars.

Which counties in Maine have the most lightning records?

Per square mile, Cumberland County leads Maine: 38 days with a lightning record since 1996, 45.4 per 1,000 square miles of land. By raw count, York County has the most lightning records (43 since 1996); large counties collect more records simply by covering more ground, so the ranking counts days with a record per unit of area (a storm filed for several forecast zones adds several records but one day).

  1. Cumberland County 45.4 (42)
  2. Lincoln County 35.1 (18)
  3. York County 34.3 (43)
  4. Androscoggin County 29.9 (14)
  5. Knox County 24.7 (9)
  6. Kennebec County 21.9 (21)
  7. Sagadahoc County 11.8 (3)
  8. Oxford County 8.7 (18)
  9. Franklin County 5.9 (11)
  10. Hancock County 5.7 (10)
  11. Waldo County 4.1 (4)
  12. Somerset County 2.0 (8)

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, days with a record in the county since 1996 per 1,000 square miles of land (Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer); in brackets, the count of records.

When is the lightning season in Maine?

67% of its lightning records since 1996 fell in June and July. The busiest month is July (87 records).

The values, month by month

Jan 0 · Feb 3 · Mar 2 · Apr 4 · May 9 · Jun 57 · Jul 87 · Aug 29 · Sep 19 · Oct 5 · Nov 0 · Dec 0 (records).

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records by the month they began, since 1996.

What were the deadliest lightning records in Maine?

Maine: the storms with the most deaths since 1996
DateRecordCharacterKilledInjuredDamage
2008-07-18 LightningStandish, Cumberland County A man and a woman were killed while outside a home in Standish when lightning struck a nearby tree and travelled along the ground. The two had gone outside in a storm to retrieve a pair of sunglasses the family dog had taken from a child when the lightning struck. 2 0 –
2007-08-25 LightningChesuncook, Piscataquis County One camper was killed and his brother injured when lightning struck a tree near their campsite and arced to strike them both where they were sheltering. The incident occurred at the Katahdin Stream Campground in Baxter State Park at some point between 8:00 and 8:15 PM. The surviving brother was hospitalized with first ... 1 1 –
2005-06-12 LightningRome, Kennebec County A Rhode Island man was struck and killed by lightning while fishing from a boat in Little North Pond in Rome. A second man on the boat was unharmed and tried to administer CPR, but was unable to revive the victim. The lightning also knocked out the boat's main motor, so a trolling motor had to be used to bring the ... 1 0 –
2000-07-04 LightningStonington, Hancock County 1 0 –

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database: deaths direct and indirect, as filed by the National Weather Service, summed over each storm (one episode, or one named storm filed by several offices). Storm names from the titles of FEMA declarations that name the storm's counties.

The costliest lightning records in Maine

Maine: the most damaging storms since 1993, 2025 dollars
DateRecordCharacterKilledInjuredDamage
2009-07-02 LightningNobleboro, Lincoln County 0 0 $2.1M
2011-07-06 LightningLocke Mills, Oxford County 0 0 $1.3M
1997-03-29 LightningCountywide, Cumberland County 0 0 $414K
2009-07-03 LightningIsle Au Haut, Knox County 0 0 $413K
2008-08-03 LightningNewcastle, Lincoln County 0 0 $411K
2004-08-03 LightningOxford County 0 0 $312K
2006-08-02 LightningFalmouth, Cumberland County 0 0 $293K
2009-06-27 LightningRumford, Oxford County 0 0 $275K

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database: property and crop damage as estimated by the National Weather Service, in 2025 dollars.

Are lightning records becoming more frequent in Maine?

Maine's count per decade against the whole country's, and its share. NOAA recorded every event type only from 1996, so earlier decades are not comparable; the share of the national total is the fairer comparison across decades.

Lightning: Maine and the United States by decade (2020s to June 30, 2026)
DecadeMaineUnited StatesMaine's share
1996-99673,5211.9%
2000s1338,0521.7%
2010s115,1030.2%
2020-2641,5440.3%

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database.

The most recent lightning records in Maine

The 12 most recent records, to June 30, 2026
DateRecordCharacterKilledInjuredDamage
2023-08-13 LightningArnold Corner, Penobscot County 0 2 –
2023-08-05 LightningWest Ellsworth, Hancock County 0 3 –
2023-08-05 LightningMolunkus, Piscataquis County 0 1 –
2023-07-05 LightningEllsworth, Hancock County 0 2 –
2015-07-19 LightningDenmark, Oxford County 0 2 –
2014-07-28 LightningSouth Bridgton, Cumberland County 0 1 –
2013-06-23 LightningEast Lebanon, York County 0 1 –
2013-06-23 LightningSongo Lock, Cumberland County 0 1 –
2012-06-29 LightningBar Harbor, Hancock County 0 2 –
2011-07-06 LightningLocke Mills, Oxford County 0 0 $1.3M
2010-06-20 LightningWaterville, Kennebec County 0 1 –
2009-07-27 LightningHarrison, Cumberland County 0 2 –

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records through June 30, 2026; the newest months are revised by NCEI as reports arrive. Search the record at NCEI.

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