Latest news with #IrmoFireDistrict
CTV News
7 hours ago
- Climate
- CTV News
12 taken to hospitals after lightning strike at South Carolina lake
LEXINGTON, S.C. — A dozen people were taken to hospitals Tuesday after a lightning strike at a South Carolina lake, officials said. Emergency crews responded to Dominion Beach Park near the Lake Murray Dam and assessed 20 patients, including 12 children, Lexington County officials said in a news release. They treated 18 people on the scene and 12 of them went to hospitals, according to county spokesperson Vanessa Diaz. Their injuries were not considered life-threatening and all of the patients were expected to recover, officials said. Dominion Beach Park was expected to reopen Wednesday following safety assessments and clearance from authorities. The weather was sunny with some clouds nearby, but not overhead when the strike happened, the Irmo Fire District said in a social media post. Lightning hit the water as several people were holding on to or swimming near a metal cable and buoys that surround the swimming area, the agency said. 'Everybody got quite a jolt,' the fire agency said. 'We're so fortunate that injuries were not worse than they were.' Injuries included minor burns, Irmo Fire District spokesperson Sloane Valentino said by telephone. Those who were holding on to the cable had the worst injuries, he said. Meteorologist Matt Gropp with the National Weather Service in Columbia called it 'a bolt from the blue,' noting that people at the lake may not have been aware of a pop-up thunderstorm a few miles to the south. It didn't even rain at the lake, Gropp said. 'It was one of the first strikes of the storm and the people there weren't expecting it,' he said. The Associated Press
Associated Press
8 hours ago
- Climate
- Associated Press
12 taken to hospitals after lightning strike at South Carolina lake
LEXINGTON, S.C. (AP) — A dozen people were taken to hospitals Tuesday after a lightning strike at a South Carolina lake, officials said. Emergency crews responded to Dominion Beach Park near the Lake Murray Dam and assessed 20 patients, including 12 children, Lexington County officials said in a news release. They treated 18 people on the scene and 12 of them went to hospitals, according to county spokesperson Vanessa Diaz. Their injuries were not considered life-threatening and all of the patients were expected to recover, officials said. Dominion Beach Park was expected to reopen Wednesday following safety assessments and clearance from authorities. The weather was sunny with some clouds nearby, but not overhead when the strike happened, the Irmo Fire District said in a social media post. Lightning hit the water as several people were holding on to or swimming near a metal cable and buoys that surround the swimming area, the agency said. 'Everybody got quite a jolt,' the fire agency said. 'We're so fortunate that injuries were not worse than they were.' Injuries included minor burns, Irmo Fire District spokesperson Sloane Valentino said by telephone. Those who were holding on to the cable had the worst injuries, he said. Meteorologist Matt Gropp with the National Weather Service in Columbia called it 'a bolt from the blue,' noting that people at the lake may not have been aware of a pop-up thunderstorm a few miles to the south. It didn't even rain at the lake, Gropp said. 'It was one of the first strikes of the storm and the people there weren't expecting it,' he said.
9 hours ago
- Climate
20 people injured in lightning strike while swimming at South Carolina beach
Twenty people were injured by a reported lightning strike while swimming at a beach in South Carolina, officials said. The incident occurred at approximately 5 p.m. on Tuesday, when multiple agencies responded to a "reported electrocution" due to lightning at Dominion Beach Park near the Lake Murray Dam in Lexington County, South Carolina, officials said in a press release. When first responders arrived on the scene, 20 patients -- eight adults and 12 juveniles -- had been injured by the strike, officials said. Eighteen of those individuals were treated at the scene, while 12 were sent to three local hospitals with non-life-threatening injuries, Vanessa Diaz, the public information officer for Lexington County, told ABC News in a statement. All of the patients are expected to recover, officials said. When the strike occurred, it was a "bright and sunny day" at the lake, but then a bolt of lightning hit the water and "energized a metal cable with buoys on it that surrounds the swimming area," the Irmo Fire District said in a statement. "Lightning can strike far away from a cloud. It doesn't seem logical but a few hundred of us are believers today," the fire district said. Several people had swam out to the buoys and were holding the cable when the lightning hit, with others nearby in the water, the fire district said. "Everybody got quite a jolt, we're so fortunate that injuries were not worse than they were," the fire district said. Dominion Beach Park is expected to reopen on Wednesday "following safety assessments and clearance from authorities," Lexington County officials said. This week is Lightning Safety Awareness Week, which began in 2001 "in order to call attention to lightning being an underrated killer," according to the National Weather Service. So far this year, there have been four reported deaths from lightning strikes in the U.S., according to the National Lightning Safety Council.
Yahoo
12 hours ago
- Climate
- Yahoo
20 shocked, 12 hospitalized after lightning strike at Lake Murray, officials say
Twenty people were shocked by a lightning bolt that struck Lake Murray Tuesday afternoon, according to Lexington County officials. The lightning strike occurred around 5 p.m. Those hit included eight adults and 12 children, according to a Lexington County post to social media. 'It was bright and sunny at the lake, with clouds nearby but not overhead,' the Irmo Fire District posted to social media Tuesday evening. 'The bolt of lightning that hit the water energized a metal cable with buoys on it that surrounds the swimming area. Several people had swam out to the buoys and were holding onto the cable when it hit, and others were nearby swimming. Everybody got quite a jolt, we're so fortunate that injuries were not worse than they were.' Lexington County posted to social media that 12 of those struck were transported to three local hospitals with non-life-threatening injuries. All are expected to recover. 'Strong relationships with other local agencies played a critical role in ensuring a quick, coordinated response, allowing first responders to assess patients efficiently and provide the best possible care,' the county posted. 'Dominion Beach Park is expected to reopen tomorrow following safety assessments and clearance from authorities.' This is a breaking news story and will be updated.
