Sadly, I read in today's Press Enterprise that these unfortunate Scouts were at 11,000 elevation when the storm hit. Being caught in the open, it was a dangerous situation that called for laying low. Years ago when working on a helitac fire crew, I was caught in an intense thunderstorm with bolts of lightning hitting the ground all around us. Our crew laid flat on ground that turned to mud with the heavy downpour as we sweated it out. Our crew of tough firefighters was SCARED and nobody said much until it was all over . I then changed my shorts.Lightning is a freaky and unpredictable force of nature. Even with common sense precautions, it can still zap you.