Lightning Season 1999 - Storms in West Virginia

By DAN ROBINSON

Editor/Photographer

From Dan: How the crime of copyright infringement took $1 million from me and shut down my operation.

In September of 2025, my work is generating the most income it ever has in my career. Yet, I'm being forced to shut down my successul operation, against my will, due to one cause alone: 95% of that revenue is being stolen by piracy and copyright infringement. I've lost more than $1 million to copyright infringement in the last 15 years, and it's finally brought an end to my professional storm chasing operation. Do not be misled by the lies of infringers, anti-copyright activists and organized piracy cartels. This page is a detailed, evidenced account of my battle I had to undertake to just barely stay in business, and eventually could not overcome. It's a problem faced by all of my colleagues and most other creators in the field.

Warm weather gives winter lightning a chance

January-February 1999

El Niño, global warming- No matter what theory you believe, there's no mistaking the fact that this winter has been one of the warmest on record. Charleston has heard thunder on three different occasions already during the month of January. On the morning of January 21, a strong cell passed to the east (see radar image at right), producing frequent, bright cloud-to-ground lightning- a even rarer event. Since it was daytime and the lightning was about 8 miles away, photographing these bolts was not possible. But it was sort of strange to be standing outside in the 'dead of winter' watching an active thunderstorm.

There's no way to tell if winter thunderstorms are a precursor to above-average severe weather this summer. But I'll have the film on hand and the camera ready just in case.....

* Lightning Season 1998
* Lightning Season 1997
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