lightning striking the Washington Monument
Lightning struck the Washington Monument Thursday night, igniting and lighting up the sky in the D.C. area, a new viral video clip shows.

What happened:

WUSA 9's Sky Cam captured video footage of lightning striking the Washington Monument with a bolt of lightning. Other flashes of light occur nearby in the moments right after.

This is somewhat normal. According to Atlas Obscura, lightning often strikes the 555-foot monument. In fact, the solid aluminum capstone melted about half of a year after it was installed in December 1884.

More lightning strikes
  • Two National Guard members deployed to Washington, D.C., were hospitalized Thursday after lightning struck the area where they were posted, according to NBC News. The location wasn't too far removed from the White House.