Every second of every day, all over the world, there are more than 100 lightning bolts. That's about ten million lightning bolts in one day! Lightning amazes us, but it can also frighten us. We have good reason to be afraid of lightning. Every year, about 100 people in the United States and Canada die from lightning, and another 300 are injured. It is strange that of all the people who die from lightning, 84 percent are men. Lightning is the main cause of forest fires; it-starts more than 9,000 fires each year.