Lightning Strikes!

Story by Ahmed Abdul-Malik, 6th grade FNN reporter, Friendship Online Academy. Photo from Trip Savvy.

April 12, 2021: I wanted to get some pictures in person of the lightning in Maracaibo, Venezuela, The Land of the Beloved Sun, so I went to the Airport to take a trip there. 

When I landed near the beach I heard a few people gasp at the lightning outside the window. I looked and there was a lot of lightning! I rushed out of the airport to get some pictures, I got a few but then I heard a loud BOOM and behind me was a tree on fire! Some firefighters came over and put it out. I was wondering if lightning in this area strikes a lot more than in other areas. The EarthData website says: “Unstable air and moisture are key, and Catatumbo Lightning gets a boost from a unique topography. Mountain ridges cup three sides of Lake Maracaibo, leaving a narrow window open north to the Gulf of Venezuela.” So this is why there are more lightning strikes here than any other place in the world.

I think I got enough pictures of the lightning so I went to the Monument of Our Lady of the Rosary of Chiquinquirá. The statue looked really amazing! It is 18 meters tall. The statue had a lady wearing a gold hat and she was holding a baby. The Cathedral is named for a Spanish Queen called the “Virgin Mary.

You should go to Maracaibo, Venezuela. There's a lot to do there and the lightning strikes look really cool, heres a link to tours there.