BEAVER LAKE (KFSM) - When it comes to a day on the lake, most boaters prefer it to be sunny.
But when storms roll in, professionals say it is important to watch for lightning.
“If a storm does come through, and it's lightning, just bank [the boat,]” said CW Smith, Prairie Creek Marina’s Head Dock Hand at Beaver Lake. “Just put it up on the bank, and get off the boat.”
Officials advise boaters to dock their boats if they see lightning on the horizon.
Boaters 5NEWS spoke with say they try to keep an eye out for storms far away.
"In the distance, if we can see it, if we can hear it, it's time to start getting towards the dock. If it starts lightning, that's pretty much when we start to come in," said Starbuck Lee, a boater at Beaver Lake. "If it's just rain, rain doesn't scare us away. We are going to get wet anyway. If it's lightning, though, we will come in.”
"There's no excuse not to come in,” Smith said. “You're talking about your life.”
On Saturday (June 13,) a 22-year-old man was killed by a lightning strike, while fishing at Beaver Lake. He was on a guided tour.
His death was the fourth death at the lake in 2015.
Some have suggested that the lake is dangerous to humans. However, Smith says the deaths should not be blamed on the lake itself.
"You just have to follow [the rules,] Smith said. “And, if everybody follows them, there's no real safety issues.”