Bay Area sees 1,200 lightning strikes in rare September thunderstorms

Lightning strike over San Francisco taken from the Sunset District on Sept. 11, 2017, at 9:38 p.m. Lightning strike over San Francisco taken from the Sunset District on Sept. 11, 2017, at 9:38 p.m. Photo: Benjamin Tran Of Benny Tran Photography (Instagram: @bennytranphotography) Photo: Benjamin Tran Of Benny Tran Photography (Instagram: @bennytranphotography) Image 1 of / 75 Caption Close Bay Area sees 1,200 lightning strikes in rare September thunderstorms 1 / 75 Back to Gallery

Updated on September 12 at 7:20 a.m.: The National Weather Service reported Tuesday morning that 1,200 cloud-to-ground strikes and 5,800 in-cloud strikes hit the Bay Area Monday night.

"You can see both," says Scott Rowe, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service office in Monterey. "Both are just as dangerous."

It started with strong wind gusts between 35 and 50 mph that roared through Monterey County and parts of the South Bay in the early morning hours. Later in the day, temperatures climbed to the 90s in San Jose and the high 80s in San Francisco.

Then came the rain, thunder, and lightning. The National Weather Service tweeted out that the Bay Area saw more than 800 lightning strikes and cloud flashes between noon and 5 p.m.

By the time thunderstorms bubbled up over parts of the Bay Area Monday afternoon, some people had had enough.

"Feels more like Mexico than Berkeley!" said Twitter user @leahmichon.

WEIRD WEATHER: Collapsing thunderstorms cause bizarre, isolated winds that whip Bay Area

800+ lightning strikes/cloud flashes since noon today#cawx pic.twitter.com/U9S19gWVZy — NWS Bay Area (@NWSBayArea) September 12, 2017

The Palo Alto Fire Department tweeted out an alarming message with multiple exclamation points: "Lightning & thunder passing over @cityofpaloalto right now. When thunder roars, head indoors!!!"

Lightning & thunder passing over @cityofpaloalto right now. When thunder roars, head indoors!!! pic.twitter.com/nXCp8ICndI — PaloAltoFire (@PaloAltoFire) September 12, 2017

Some people didn't heed the fire department's warning, instead heading outside to take pictures and video of the lightning strikes.

Video of this evenings lightning from San Jose over looking the Santa Cruz Mts. #photography #lightning #ktvu #kron4 #abc7news #kpix5 #nbcbayarea A post shared by Bryan Stapleton (@stapletonphotography) on Sep 11, 2017 at 6:08pm PDT

MICROCLIMATE FORECAST: Was there really a 55-degree temperature difference in SF Sunday?

The National Weather Service predicts a 20 to 30 percent chance of thunderstorms overnight into Tuesday morning for San Francisco. Tuesday will be partly cloudy with a high in the mid-70s, before a 20 percent chance of rain and thunderstorms returns at night.

Read Alix Martichoux's latest stories and send her news tips at amartichoux@sfchronicle.com.