Concentrated lightning was in the area during the Ethiopian Airlines Flight409 crash into the Mediterranean Sea shortly after takeoff from Beirut, Lebanonearly Monday morning, local time.There were rain showers accompanied by a considerable amount of thunder andlightning in the vicinity of Beirut at the time of the crash.
The Boeing 737-800, bound for Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, had approximately 90people aboard. So far, about two dozen bodies have been recovered.
According to the World Wide Lightning Location Network, the last five days havehad a very high lightning concentration for the area in and around Lebanon.
Showery weather and rough seas will hinder search and rescue efforts today.
High temperatures will be in the mid- to upper 50s this afternoon. The cause ofthe crash is still unknown.
A relative of one of the passengers commented that the plane should have beendelayed at take off due to bad weather.
"They should have delayed the flight for an hour or two to protect thepassengers. There had been strong lightning bolts and we hear that lightningstrikes planes especially during take offs." Story by AccuWeather.com Meteorologist Katie Storbeck with content contributedby Carly Porter.
