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A household of 3 was struck by lightning portion nether an umbrella astatine a formation successful Florida's Pinellas County, officials said Friday.
St. Pete Beach Fire Rescue was dispatched to the country astatine 12:19 p.m., Deputy Fire Chief Adam Poirrer said. Multiple units from the occurrence rescue squad and Pinellas County Sheriff's Office responded and rendered exigency aid, Porrier said.
Two big victims were treated on-scene and refused further treatment. A 17-year-old miss was taken to Tampa General Hospital. There was nary contiguous update disposable connected her condition.
CBS affiliate WTSP reported that the household had been lasting nether their umbrella during a thunderstorm. Jennifer Tillman said she saw the full happening from her flat overlooking the beach.
"You could perceive it, it was coming person and person and closer, and past it happened," Tillman told WTSP. "I don't know, I don't know. It was conscionable 1 of those things, I don't know, that you tin ne'er - you can't unsee."
Tillman said that a Good Samaritan picked up the miss aft the lightning strike. She said the different 2 radical appeared to beryllium successful daze aft the strike.
Images from the country showed the family's umbrella singed and snapped successful half, with different belongings damaged by the lightning strike. Dead gulls were besides disposable successful the area.
The safest spot to beryllium during a lightning tempest is inside, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The bureau recommends against carrying immoderate metallic objects, including umbrellas. Metal tin behaviour electricity, and a idiosyncratic is much apt to beryllium struck by lightning if carrying a conductor supra enarthrosis height.
"If you are retired connected the formation oregon anyplace with an umbrella that is taller than you, you are virtually creating a lightning rod," WTSP meteorologist Bobby Deskins said.
Tillman said that conscionable hours aft the incident, the tempest had cleared retired and caller beachgoers had travel to observe the 4th of July with fireworks.
"A full caller question of radical came," Tillman said. "Like thing had ever happened."
St. Pete Beach is simply a tiny metropolis connected a obstruction land successful Pinellas County, astir 20 miles southwest of Tampa.
Kerry Breen is simply a quality exertion astatine CBSNews.com. A postgraduate of New York University's Arthur L. Carter School of Journalism, she antecedently worked astatine NBC News' TODAY Digital. She covers existent events, breaking quality and issues including substance use.
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