Lightning strikes, setting Cape Coral family’s home on fire

Reporter: Gina Tomlinson
Published: Updated:
lightning generic
Lightning.

It was a terrifying day for a Cape Coral family as a father scrambled to save his kids when a lightning strike sparked a house fire.

Wade Fuwell said he’s lucky that there wasn’t more damage after a bolt of lightning hit a palm tree just outside their home while his son and three daughters were all inside.

”Never thought it happen to me,” Fuwell said.

He said he heard a loud boom before the power went out and the smell of smoke permeated in the air as a fire started to grow in the attic.

The Cape Coral Fire Department responded and was able to put the fire out before the home was destroyed.

To protect yourself from these strikes, the CCFD said not to use electronics that are directly connected to a power source. If lightning hits your home, the current can travel through the power or cable lines to electronics and eventually you.

Meanwhile, the family is happy to be safe and hope lightning does not strike the same place twice.

”You never know where its going to hit,” Fuwell said. “There’s nothing you can really do about it.”

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