Apparently, it’s more common than you’d think
Severe thunderstorms in America have caused a tree to catch fire from the inside, producing a rather unique and quite beautiful pattern in the bark.
On Tuesday, firefighters were called to Ridgeville, a small township 45 miles south of Toledo, Ohio, after lightning strikes had caused a fire. The Ridgeville Township Volunteer Fire Department has since shared images of a tree that was struck by lightning, showing vibrant molten effects and wood that appears to be melting.
“Lightning can do some crazy things and we had a tough time getting to every hot spot in this tree trunk,” the fire department wrote.
The fire department reported that a specialist service was called to properly remove the tree and subdue the fire. Images taken after the tree was extinguished show blackened bark, but still, it continued standing.
While the tree looks almost alien in some shots, such phenomena are quite normal. Because of their height, trees are natural lightning rods that very often catch on fire. Forestry experts at Purdue University said that sap inside the tree acts as a better conductor than the wood itself.
As lightning strikes are five times hotter than the sun, strikes can cause internal pressure to build until it explodes from within. Sometimes this can demolish the tree, but in cases like this, the tree can burn from within for hours.
“Yet, rain-soaked bark often shows little damage because the lightning may follow the outside of the bark and flow into the ground,” the forestry experts state. “Internal tree structure, such as spiral grains, can induce a spiral pattern on the outside of the bark as the lightning follows the moisture within the tree.”
Back in 2015, a similar scene involving a tree in Ohio was dubbed “devil tree” for its red insides.
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