Sometimes, thunderstorms roll through the area producing lots of lightning but little rain. These are known as dry thunderstorms, or dry lightning. With the storms, most of the rainfall evaporates before it reaches the ground. Lightning from these storms can spark wildfires. These dry lightning started fires are more common in arid regions like the Southwest and are particularly dangerous in forested areas, where there is a large fuel load.
Mary Knapp, Weather Data Library
mknapp@ksu.edu