Severe thunderstorms are threatening a huge swath of the U.S. from eastern Texas to the Carolinas over the Independence Day holiday, provoking stern warnings from forecasters during what is already the deadliest month for lightning strikes, NBC News reported. Lightning strikes have killed 15 people this year in the U.S. — and that death toll could easily surge past last year's total of 26, the National Weather Service warned. In Horry County, South Carolina, where thousands of vacationers will pack Myrtle Beach, meteorologists counted 732 lightning strikes in only 15 minutes Thursday night.
