Brit tourist hit by lightning and thrown off his feet while fishing on holiday

Daily Mirror

3 days ago

WARNING: GRAPHIC CONTENT Steve Barrett, 54, was hit by an unexpected bolt of lightning while fishing with friends at the Carp Zoo fishery in the Loire Valley on unlucky Friday, June 13
A British tourist has recalled the terrifying moment he was temporarily "paralysed" by a freak lightning strike while fishing in France. Steve Barrett, 54, was hit by an unexpected bolt of lightning while angling with friends at the Carp Zoo fishery in the Loire Valley on unlucky Friday, June 13.
The gardener, from Dorset, was standing 10ft from a tree when it was directly hit by the lightning strike before the electric current "bounced" and hit Steve's fishing rod. He was blasted off his feet and lay paralysed on the bank, fearing he was dead, as his friends desperately raced towards him.
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Steve was rushed to hospital suffering with broken ribs, burns, bruising and a hole in his shoulder as a result of the blast. He also suffered injuries from splinters that flew over from the nearby tree. Luckily, the fisherman is due to make a full recovery but feels grateful to be alive after surviving the freak event on the 'unlucky' date.
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Steve said: "It was just one strike, it didn't even rain after, it was just one bolt of lightning 'bang'. I was fishing on the bank at the time. One of the guys saw the lightning strike but didn't realise it had hit me.
"It kind of bounced off the tree then hit my fishing rod. It wasn't a direct hit, I probably wouldn't have survived that.
"I was probably about 10 feet away from the tree. I knew I'd got hit because I could just feel the heat that went through my left side. It paralysed me straight away.
"It was just masses of pins and needles, I couldn't feel my body at all. It was a really odd sensation."
Dazed and unable to move, Steve was rushed to hospital via ambulance where doctors treated his extensive injuries.
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After five days in hospital and multiple stitches, Steve was able to return home feeling lucky to be alive.
Steve said: "It was only a second or two [after being hit] before I went unconscious. I thought I was dead. I kind of went through a bit of emotional trauma there.
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"My shoulder got hit by those pieces of wood that came from the tree. Couple of inches higher and it would've got me in the neck. I feel very lucky. I've not had any after effects of being hit by lightning."
The shocking incident comes just weeks after a man tragically died after being struck by lightning while on his honeymoon in Florida.
Jake Rosencranz, 29, was standing ankle-deep in the water at New Smyrna Beach, near Daytona Beach, when he was hit by lightning on Friday afternoon, according to Volusia County Beach Safety officials. Emergency responders performed CPR on the scene before rushing him to hospital in critical condition.
Despite efforts to save him, Jake was pronounced dead the following day. The newlywed, who was visiting from Colorado, had been in Florida to celebrate his wedding with his wife, Leah.