Lightning Strikes Port St. John Woman
By Space Coast Daily // August 16, 2012
Injuries Not Serious
BREVARD COUNTY • PORT ST. JOHN, FLORIDA – A 43-year-old woman considers herself lucky to be alive after she was struck by lightning today in Port St. John.
Brevard County Fire Rescue Lt. Jeff Taylor said crews were dispatched to the 6300 block of Arborwood Avenue at 3:07 p.m. as a severe weather system began moving through the area.
Taylor said the woman told rescuers that she was inside a barn when the lightning strike hit.
She was treated at the scene and transported by ambulance to Wuesthoff Medical Center in Rockledge.
Taylor said that her injuries were not considered immediately life-threatening.
The National Weather Service reports that to date, 21 people have been killed by lightning strikes this year in the United States. Hundreds more are permanently injured.
“When severe weather approaches; stop all activities, seek shelter in a substantial building or hard topped vehicle, and wait 30 minutes after the storm before resuming activities,” Taylor said. “Lightning often strikes more than three miles from the center of the thunderstorm, far outside the rain or thunderstorm cloud.”
“Bolts from the blue” can strike 10 to 15 miles from the thunderstorm.
