Grey's Anatomy Universe Wiki

Hello! Welcome to Grey's Anatomy Universe Wiki! On this website you can read character, actor and episode pages, or if the pages don't exist already or they can be improved, you can edit them! You can also view images and have discussions on blogs! Please create an account and join the community, it is absolutely free!

READ MORE

Grey's Anatomy Universe Wiki
Don't have an account?
Register
Advertisement
Register
Grey's Anatomy Universe Wiki
Grey's Anatomy Universe Wiki
Official wiki
11,165
pages
in: All Episodes, GA Episodes, GA S19 Episodes
English

Thunderstruck

Edit

“ The human body is full of energy. Sprinting at full speed, it produces enough wattage to power anything in your house. Your cells are built to move charged ions through the cellular membrane. And the nervous system is a highway of electrical signals zapping through your muscles and brain. Your body runs on positive and negative charges, all obeying a basic law of physics: opposites attract. There's lightning in everyone. Opposite charges finding each other. They connect. They spark. And as long as they do, your life goes on. Your cells keep multiplying. Your brain keeps thinking. Your body wants to move, so it moves, because it can. Life is electricity. Positive and negative. Creation and destruction. Destruction, sometimes for the better, sometimes for the worse. But we're all storms inside. ”

Thunderstruck is the sixth episode and mid-season finale of the nineteenth season and the 406th overall episode of Grey's Anatomy.

Short Summary[]

On the heels of life-changing news, a thunderstorm hits Grey Sloan. The attending surgeons and interns work together to save an injured reporter and family affected by the storm. Meanwhile, a beloved author undergoes a risky surgery, and complications from the storm arise.

Full Summary[]

As the thunderstorm rages outside, Meredith sends out an e-mail to her staff to announce that she will be leaving to move to Boston.

Simone and Lucas are studying together at the hospital. They share an intense look after being surprised by the thunder. Lucas then receives Meredith's e-mail.

In the ER, Teddy cautions her staff to stay inside the building during the storm. Owen arrives with the kids. There is still hostility between the two. He brings up Meredith's e-mail.

Link is making breakfast as Jo walks in. She's not feeling it today since the opening of the clinic is ruined by a thunderstorm, Meredith is apparently leaving, and none of Luna's clothes suddenly fit her anymore. She wants to stay home. Link says he'll go find some of Scout's clothes for Luna.

Meredith is surprised to see Maggie in her kitchen. Maggie took the day off to pack up Meredith's stuff with love and respect despite movers and packers coming this weekend. Maggie and Amelia liked her e-mail. Meredith has a Whipple with Nick, whom she hasn't talked to about leaving. Maggie has been avoiding Winston, too. Amelia and Meredith head out to work. The lights flash for a moment as the thunder rages.

Jo meets Bailey and Carina outside the clinic. The accreditation hasn't come through in time for an official opening. Carina will take the scheduled patients upstairs pro bono. Richard arrives with croissants to celebrate. Upon learning of the bureaucratic problems, he invites Bailey to join him in surgery today. Besides, the ER will be packed.

Amelia ends up on the elevator with Lucas. She can read on his face that he hasn't told anyone the truth. Kwan and Mika get on, too. Lucas tries to make an excuse but they aren't buying it. Mika and Kwan get off. Amelia then decides this is over and orders Lucas to follow him.

Nick is waiting for all of the interns to arrive. Mika and Kwan arrive late, followed soon by Amelia and Lucas. Amelia says Lucas has an announcement. Lucas then shares that he is a Shepherd. Amelia clarifies that they have not and never will be having sex. Mika asks Lucas if he knows why Grey is deserting them. Benson fears that they'll need to start looking elsewhere. Nick wants them to focus on saving lives rather than Meredith leaving and stresses that the surgical program bigger than one person. They are the program and it's not going anywhere. Lucas and Simone will be assisting with the Whipple, the others will help out in the pit.

Mika joins Teddy and Link as they meet an ambulance. They climb into the rig where Ben and Theo tell them about Jonathan Bright, a TV reporter who went down in a helicopter. With a possible spinal injury, they extracted the whole chair with him in it out of the wreck. Jonathan wants to see his wife. Teddy takes charge and directs the group to trauma room 3.

Winston arrives at Meredith's house. He wanted to ruin Maggie's plan to avoid him and he wants to talk while they pack. Maggie says Meredith is purging and she's not one for sentimentality. Maggie asks Zola to watch her siblings while she and Winston get started in the attic.

At the hospital, Meredith has Tessa Hobbes sign copies of her book for each of her kids. Meredith was a big fan of Tessa's novels as a child. Simone presents the case. Tessa has chronic pancreatitis for which they will perform a Whipple. She's a big fan of Tessa's too. Meredith re-iterates that the surgery is risky. Tessa still has a story to tell with her character but she's too sick to write it. She sleeps all day. Tessa is prepared for every outcome but her readers are not. They deserve an end to Tessa's story.

Owen finds Richard as he's struggling with the new electronic OR board. Owen wants to throw his head in the ring to replace Meredith as Chief. Richard was thinking they need someone without a suspended license. He invites Owen to help out Schmitt.

Amelia has joined Teddy and Link on Jonathan's case. She wants to extract Jonathan out of the chair to properly assess the spine. Teddy points out he might be in neurogenic shock. The X-ray reveals collapsed lungs on both sides as well as possible mid-cervical and high thoracic spinal fractures. Teddy moves to insert bilateral chest tubes while Link says they'll need a CT for the femoral fracture. Paola, Jonathan's wife, arrives and he apologizes for having boarded the helicopter. Teddy urges her colleagues to let her work on the chest tubes first or they'll lose him. Mika is impressed by her taking charge. Teddy requests Owen.

Levi walks with Jules and Benson to the ER and warns them about the gnarly injuries they'll see today. Benson says it's highly unlikely that they'll see someone who was actually hit by lightning. They are met by Colson Smith, whose wife and kids got zapped when the basketball ring was struck by lightning. Levi is paged away but Benson is confident that they got this. Benson orders elaborate labs and ECG's for each family member. Paige keeps shouting as her hearing appears to have been affected.

Lucas meets Simone in the tunnels to study for the procedure together. He offers her some grapes. She shows him the clock-shaped diagram she made for the procedure. Simone grew up with Tessa's books and she's excited to be part of her story in a small way. She asks how he feels about his secret being out. He feels different but not better. Most people go to work to avoid their families so he doesn't want them to call him Shepherd. He smiles and leaves her his grapes as he goes to check in with Nick.

The doctors have inserted the chest tube. The doctors have come up with a plan to cut Jonathan out of the chair. Before Paola leaves, Jonathan apologizes to her for having been an ass. He blamed her for having given up his dream job but he makes it out alive, he'll work every day for her forgiveness. Paola leaves the room and the doctors start freeing Jonathan.

Jo arrives in the ER to help out but she's not thrilled to hear from a nurse that Levi is handing out assignments. He directs her to a head lac and ankle injury. She berates him for his lack of gratitude. He fails at sincerely thanking her and tells her gratitude is implied for the rest of the day.

Nick shows Lucas that the pancreatitis formed a pseudo-aneurysm of the GDA, meaning Lucas will have to be very careful with the Kocher manoeuvre. Nick notices that Lucas is nervous but tells him he put in the work to pull this off. He assures Lucas that he is good enough to make his own name. Lucas leaves and Richard comes in to talk to Nick. He wants to know, for the program's sake, if Nick is looking to move to Boston, too. Nick has been really busy and there appears to be no right answer with Meredith. Richard knows she's not easy but there is no one like her. Richard wants to prepared across the board for when she leaves. Nick promises to keep him posted.

Simone has come to take Tessa to the OR. She first asks Tessa to sign a collector's item copy of one of her books. Simone says it meant a lot to her growing up without a mother to read about a child with a messy life. Tessa agrees that kids needs messy stories. As Lucas arrives, Tessa says it could be her epitaph. She knows very well that she might die today. She tells children the truth in a way that helps them hear it and she wants to face that truth. She signs the book and comments it might be her very last signature. Tessa then declares that she is ready.

Meredith finds Nick in the scrub room to check if he's told Lucas about the pseudo-aneurysm. Nick hates that he had to find out with everyone else that Lucas is Derek's nephew. Meredith kept his family connection private like he asked. Nick says he wouldn't blindside Lucas with the pseudo-aneurysm. Meredith admits she doesn't know what to do either. Every answer here feels bad. If he asks her to stay, he's a jerk, and he would desert the class if he were to follow her. Meredith points out she hasn't asked him to do either of those things. Nick points out she hasn't asked him anything, which tells him she does not consider him part of her life. He understands why she made the decision. He wants to be and is supportive but for now, he wants to focus on the surgery.

Jules tells Heather that Paige has a perforated eardrum. Benson cuts in and says it's a common injury that'll heal on its own. Benson himself is debriding the wounds on Logan's feet. He hates how his new Jordans exploded. Benson explains the lightning turned his sweat into steam.

The metal fragment from the seat that is impaling Jonathan's leg is cut. A whole team of doctors keep Jonathan level as they move him onto a gurney. The movement has caused Jonathan to lose his airway so Teddy moves to intubate him.

Maggie and Winston come across Meredith and Derek's wedding post-it while cleaning out Zola's room. Maggie decides to hold onto it so it doesn't accidentally get thrown away. Maggie is excited for Meredith and Zola's next chapter. Winston brings up his own new chapter. There is a fellowship for vascular surgery and he's filling out the application. Maggie thinks he'll change his mind and it's not an ideal time to find a replacement. Winston says that applies to her.

Owen and Teddy inform Paola that they are taking Jonathan up to surgery. He is stable for now. Paola says Jonathan turned down an opportunity to become a war correspondent. She didn't want him to take the job because of the stress it would cause her. Teddy promises they'll do everything to save him.

Meredith gets ready to mobilize the ligament of Treitz but Nick wants to give the opportunity to Lucas. Meredith doubts he's ready but he pulls it off. Meredith asks about the next step. Lucas says it's the Kocher manoeuvre. Nick compliments Lucas and mentions he might get to do the chole when they get to it.

Levi is dismayed to find Jo shopping for clothes for Luna in the ER. She just needs five minutes but he berates her regardless. Jo puts him in his place for letting the power get to his head already. In the world of general surgery, she is an attending and she's helping him out of the kindness of her heart. He now sincerely thanks her. She goes to see another patient.

Benson requests Jules to come take a look at Heather's injury, though refuses to actually call it a consult. Jules checks out the necklace-shaped burn on her neck and figures that the tin in her bronze necklace was melted by the lightning, unlike the copper, which has a higher melting temperature. Jules tells Benson to just clean the wound with chlorhexidine and debride the wound after. She says she's always available for another consult if he gets stumped again.

Teddy and Mika join Amelia and Link in the OR. Jonathan's CT showed a unilateral C3 facet fracture and a compression fracture at T5 as well as an epidural hematoma. Amelia will decompress the spinal cord while Teddy assist Link with the repair of the femoral artery. Mika asks Amelia if she can assist her, which Amelia tells her she can do by just standing there and observing this delicate procedure. Teddy assures Mika she's done great so far.

Meredith notices that Lucas is not following her moves with the retractor, causing bad visualization. Nick quietly tells Lucas that what happened this morning doesn't matter in the OR. Since Lucas zoned out for a while, Simone reminds him with gestures as to where they are in the procedure. Meredith finds that Lucas once again spaces out so she has Simone take over for him.

Maggie admits she's worried that Winston is changing specialties to get away from her. Bailey comes to ask them to come see the lightning with him but they tell him they'll be down later. Maggie says she came here this morning not to dodge him but to get some space and find a sense of control. Winston is certain that their marriage won't survive if they keep working together. He loves her more than he loves cardio. She can't respect him if he's giving up his career goals for her. Suddenly, the house is struck by lightning.

Link and Teddy extract the piece of metal from Jonathan's leg while Amelia works on the spinal cord. When his sats drop, Dr. Knox finds an absence of breath sounds on the right. Teddy finds the chest tube is blocked and swiftly pulls it out while quickly plugging the hole with her finger. She then replaces her finger with gauze and then returns to her position at the table. Mika is in awe.

A disappointed Lucas observes as the surgery goes on with Simone in his place. Bailey and Richard sit down in the gallery. He thanks her for assisting him in the OR. He had forgotten how nice it was to operate with her. He appreciates the institutional knowledge she brings to the table. She cuts him off and says she won't be taking over as Chief. She has a clinic to manage and his flattery won't change her mind. Bailey answers a worrying call from Ben.

The surgeons have completed the critical part of the Whipple. Simone is relieved that Tessa will make it. Richard comes in and orders Meredith to take her hands out of the surgical field. He then informs her that Station 19 is on its way to respond to a call about a fire at her address. They can't reach Maggie and Winston. Nick assures Meredith that he's got this and she rushes off.

Richard's car pulls up near Meredith's house. She gets out and Ben takes her closer to her house. Her kids, Maggie, and Winston all made it out fine. Station 19 is working on the fire, seemingly contained to the roof. Andy urges Meredith to keep a safe distance. Zola says they failed at taking out any of the stuff inside. Meredith only cares about them.

In the ICU, Nick instructs Simone to monitor Tessa's JP output closely. He heard that Meredith's kids are okay, which is all that matters. Nick tells Simone she did great today. It was a rough surgery for many reasons but she wasn't one of those reasons. Nick leaves and Simone reads Tessa's inscription: "To Simone, fewer fairytales, more life."

Teddy and Owen inform Paola that Jonathan is facing a long recovery but he made it through today. Paola thanks the doctors and heads into Jonathan's room to sit with him. Teddy tells Mika that Amelia wants hourly neuro checks. Mika says there are nine kids in her family. Her parents kept going until they finally had a boy. They always told Mika and her sisters that they could be anything they wanted but the subtext that girls aren't enough was hard to ignore. They cooked that idea into her pretty good, even though she knows it's not true. Today, Teddy uncooked it. Teddy is a badass boss lady surgeon and Mika wants to be her when she grows up. Teddy appreciates it. Mika then leaves. Teddy is expecting a joke from Owen but he suggests she applies for the Chief position. He jokes they could use the money.

Benson joins Jules in the skills lab with food. She asks how he knows so much about lightning. He'll tell her if she shares how she knows the melting points of precious metals. Jules's mother used to make jewelry, which she and her brother sold at the farmers' market as a cover while their dad sold weed under the table. Her parents are still high to this day. Benson went to medical school in Saint Kitts, where lightning is a part of life. He was valedictorian in high school but his mother got sick in college and his grades plummeted. His mother died eventually. He comments the two of them would make one hell of a trivia team.

Link finds Jo in the lounge. He bought her clothes for Luna from the gift shop to get her through the week. Jo hugs him. They linger a bit as she lets go. As he suggests they get takeout, Jo receives an exciting message.

Jo, Bailey, and Carina pose for a picture for Link as they cut the ribbon on the clinic doors. Accreditation came through. Link inquires about the clinic's name, the Elena Bailey Memorial Clinic for Reproductive Health. Bailey says she named the clinic after her late mother, who spent her life fighting to make sure Bailey had every opportunity and freedom she deserved. While their relationship was complicated, Bailey wanted to honor the courage it took for Elena to love her with her entire heart. Now it's their turn to show courage. Bailey then pops the champagne bottle.

Simone finds Lucas in the locker room and tells him Tessa is awake. She's on a high while Lucas is down about getting benched. Simone tries to comfort him by stating it could have happened to anyone. Anyone can have a bad day. He needs her to stop being nice. Tessa could have died and if she had, Simone wouldn't be here to comfort him. She tells him to stop yelling since she stepped in and saved his ass. He should be thanking her. They then share a kiss until Simone pulls away. She can't do this. She leaves.

Amelia has arrived at Meredith's. Andy says it's too early to say anything but they are doing everything they can. Maggie then shows Meredith she did manage to take the framed post-it. Meredith clenches the post-it to her chest. The sisters, Winston, and the kids watch as the firefighters work to put out the fire.

Cast[]

Main Cast[]

Guest Stars[]

Co-Starring[]

Medical Notes[]

Richard's Patient[]

  • Diagnosis:
  • Treatment:
    • Sigmoid resection

Richard asked for Bailey's help on a sigmoid resection.

Jonathan Bright[]

  • Diagnosis:
    • Femoral fracture
    • Unilateral facet fracture at C3
    • Compression fracture at T5
    • Epidural hematoma
    • Third-degree burns
    • Bilateral pneumothorax
    • Tension pneumothorax
  • Treatment:
    • Bilateral chest tubes
    • Spinal decompression
    • Spinal fusion
    • Vascular repair

Jonathan, 42, was in a helicopter crash while reporting on the lightning storm. With a bar impaling his leg, the firefighters extracted him with the seat he was in to avoid paralyzing him. He had third degree burns and a possible spinal injury on top of the injury to his thigh. In the ER, they diagnosed two collapsed lungs and put in bilateral chest tubes. The x-ray also showed a deformity in the mid-cervical and high-thoracic spine. Link said he was impaled near his femoral fracture, so he wanted a CT. Owen did an ultrasound that showed a small amount of fluid in the upper left quadrant. They worked together to get him out of his seat and flat on a gurney. He lost his airway during this transition, forcing them to intubate. Then he was taken for a CT, which showed a unilateral facet fracture at C3 and a compression fracture at T5 as well as a epidural hematoma. Amelia said she'd decompress the spinal cord and stabilize his spine as quickly as she could. They also needed to do vascular repair on his femoral artery after removing the rod. During the surgery, he developed a tension pneumothorax, so Teddy remove his chest tube and was able to restore respiration. His surgery was successful and his wife was told he'd have a long recovery, but was expected to make it.

Tessa Hobbes[]

  • Diagnosis:
    • Chronic pancreatitis
    • Pseudoaneurysm
  • Treatment:
    • Whipple

Tessa, 68, had been diagnosed with chronic pancreatitis. Other treatments were ineffective, so she was in the hospital for a whipple. She had a pseudoaneurysm of the gastroduodenal artery, complicating her surgery. In her surgery, Nick had Lucas mobilize the ligament of Treitz, but Lucas wasn't keeping up with Meredith, so she had him step back and had Simone step in in his place. They were able to finish the surgery. After surgery, Nick was concerned about her JP output, so he had Simone monitor her and said to call him and transfuse if it went below 7. Despite this concern, she woke up after her surgery.

Heather Smith[]

  • Diagnosis:
    • Burns
  • Treatment:
    • Debridement

Heather was struck by lightning by way of the basketball hoop in her backyard. Kwan ordered labs and 12-lead EKGs. Her bronze necklace became fuzed to her neck when the tin vaporized, leaving the copper to embed itself in her skin. Kwan debrided the injury.

Logan Smith[]

  • Diagnosis:
    • Burns
  • Treatment:
    • Burn cream

Logan was struck by lightning by way of the basketball hoop in his backyard. Kwan ordered labs and 12-lead EKGs. He had burns on his feet, armpits, the backs of his knees, and elbows. Kwan put burn cream on his feet.

Paige Smith[]

  • Diagnosis:
    • Perforated eardrum
  • Treatment:

Paige was struck by lightning by way of the basketball hoop in her backyard. Kwan ordered labs and 12-lead EKGs. She had a perforated eardrum and resulting hearing loss, but was otherwise stable.

ER Patients[]

  • Diagnosis:
  • Treatment:

There was a patient with a head laceration in bed six and an ankle injury in bed nine. Levi sent Jo to treat both of them.

Ms. McGregor[]

  • Diagnosis:
  • Treatment:

Ms. McGregor was in bed four in the ER. Jo went to tend to her.

Music[]

Song Performer Scene
"Call on Me" India Carney & Storyboards feat. Garrison Starr
  • Meredith writes an email to her colleagues resigning and sends it.
  • Lucas and Simone get the email.
  • Teddy tells the staff to stay inside during the storm.
  • Owen comes in with the kids and shows Teddy the email.
"Otherside" Texada
  • Jonathan starts coding and Teddy saves him.
  • Lucas watches Meredith operate.
  • Richard and Bailey enter the gallery.
"Look to the Sky" Imie Taala
  • Simone looks at the book inscription Tessa wrote.
  • Paola is told Jonathan will recover.
  • Mika tells Teddy she wants to be her.
  • Owen tells Teddy to apply to be chief.
  • Kwan finds Jules in the lab practicing.
"One Step" Jeremy Lister
  • Jo and Link talk.
  • Jo, Bailey, and Carina cut the ribbon on the clinic.
  • Bailey talks about her mom and pops the sparkling cider.
  • Simone celebrates the whipple.
  • Lucas is upset because he failed.
  • Simone and Lucas start kissing. Simone pulls away.
  • Andy tells Amelia and Meredith that they're trying everything.
  • Maggie shows Meredith the post-it.

Notes and Trivia[]

  • This episode's title originated from the song Thunderstruck, originally sung by AC/DC.
  • This episode scored 3.72 million viewers.[1]
  • This episode marks the 400th appearance of James Pickens, Jr. as Richard Webber.

Gallery[]

Episode Stills[]

Quotes[]

See Also[]

A complete overview of this episode's crew can be found here.

References[]

Deutsch Español
Community content is available under CC-BY-SA unless otherwise noted.
Advertisement

Fan Feed

More Grey's Anatomy Universe Wiki