New Jersey is right in the middle of the traditionally stormiest month of the year and already the state has seen numerous injuries and two deaths caused by lightning.

The incidents at a Sussex County golf course and a Jackson Township archery range have pushed the Garden State into weather headlines.

Sarah Johnson is the warning coordination meteorologist at the National Weather Service in Mount Holly.

“Lightning can strike well away from where it is raining. In fact, a lot of lightning fatalities in the U.S. happen where it isn't raining,” said Johnson.

Joshson says that positive strikes will generally come out of the top or high up in a cloud, so they are more likely to be striking where it may not be raining.

“It can be as hot as the temperature you see at the surface of the sun,” she says.

Lightning requires three ingredients: moisture, unstable air and lift.

Wednesday's storms began with towering cumulus clouds just west of the beaches. Humidity provided moisture in an already unstable atmosphere and lift was aided by a warm front. The collision of hail, ice crystals and rain inside the storm created the static electricity.

A radar image taken at the time of the Jackson Township incident shows a common feature of Wednesday's storms - lightning striking far from the main area of rain after it's moved through.

How can one tell if there's a risk from that first bolt even before seeing lightning or hear thunder? Johnson says that if storms are forecasted, simply watch the sky.

“If you can see it from far enough away, if you see the cloud is getting taller, then that can be a warning sign. Some of the thunderstorms on Wednesday produced a lot of lightning. That tends to happen when storms have a lot of ice in the clouds,” she said.

The National Weather Service says if you're caught outside in lightning, there are no safe spots. Find a shelter or a hard-top vehicle and then wait 30 minutes after you see the last flash or hear the last rumble before resuming outside activities.