When Lightning Strikes, Daktronics is Prepared!
On Saturday in Raleigh, North Carolina, lightning struck near NC State’s Carter-Finley Stadium and caused some concern with their brand-new Daktronics display.
Justin Ochsner on 9/13/2023
Categories: Pro Sports and Colleges
When the NC State Wolfpack hosted Notre Dame on Saturday, September 9, there was excitement for a new, huge video display in the end zone. The ensuing weather quickly put a damper on the game when lightning struck extremely close to the stadium and the lights went out on the display. NC State and our Daktronics team was on-site and ready to act quickly.
The display wasn’t actually hit by lightning as some may have heard. During the 2nd quarter with about 12 minutes to go, the game was suspended for lightning in the area. During this delay, lightning struck. It hit near the stadium but did not actually hit the display. But, it did cause the display to flicker off and on.
Immediately, our technicians on site asked NC State if it was okay to turn off the display until it was safe to enter the scoreboard and assess the situation. Once it was safe, the Daktronics team got to work analyzing the system. The display was turned back on and a couple of sections were affected.
One section needed a new cable. It was replaced and back to functioning properly immediately.
The other section that was out was a bit more complicated. It required making sure safe entry into the display was allowed. After the needed adjustments were made – a few new cables here and a new power supply there – the display was 100% operational for the second half and had no issues the rest of the game.
When Daktronics provides industry-leading environmental protection, this includes surge suppression for outdoor displays. These surge suppressors are located within the panels of the video board and are extremely quick at clamping and redirecting surges to the ground. This greatly minimizes damage from any nearby lightning strikes.
What did this mean for LED technology? These surge suppressors worked as intended and minimized damage allowing our technicians on site to make some minor fixes and have the display up and running again at 100%.
It should be noted that lightning strike protection is not required, unless by local codes. But this surge protection goes a long way to help prevent significant damage.
So, if you’ve heard about this incident, the display didn’t get fried or need to be completely replaced. Instead, Daktronics’ trained and experienced technicians on site did their job and created a successful event.