Police confirmed a third death Friday afternoon.

And what looks like a rainy weekend to follow.

That was a close call.

From last night’s storm.

Bad afternoon thunderstorms shut down BWI airport for a bit after lightening struck an air traffic control tower.

You probably didn’t miss this morning’s thunderclap. Well, neither did Cleveland Park residents, where lightning hit a tree and produced a noise loud enough to make them think it was an explosion.

Even though they can instill fear and cause lots of damage, lightning strikes are pretty cool to watch from afar. Photos of these electrical discharges have been trending in the DCist Flickr Pool these past few days after a couple of storms. So, of course, these bright beauties are going to get a photo gallery.

A storm expected to hit the area this evening is expected to be strong, bringing with it everything from hail to possible tornadoes.

First, an earthquake damaged one of the National Cathedral’s finials. Then, Hurricane Irene knocked over a tree on its grounds. And now today, as a heavy band of storms plowed its way through the District, a crane working on repairing the Cathedral actually fell over, damaging a nearby building and several vehicles.

The District got a brief taste of the severe storms which brought Chicago to its knees yesterday, and as clouds rolled in, this editor’s first thoughts turned to those who had congregated at Fort Reno.