Latest news with #SpencerLoalbo
USA Today
14 hours ago
- Climate
- USA Today
People keep being struck by lightning: 4 reports in about 24 hours
The lightning injuries occur just as the 25th annual National Lightning Safety Awareness Week kicks off on June 22. At least four people were struck by lightning over a time span of roughly 24 hours on June 19 and 20 as summer thunderstorms pummeled parts of the nation. A 15-year-old boy survived being struck by lightning in Central Park in New York City on the afternoon of June 19, according to reports by Accuweather and media outlets in the area. The following day, on June 20, three men experienced jolts in New Smyrna Beach, Florida, on the state's east-central coast. A 29-year-old Colorado man standing in the ocean in ankle deep water around 12:30 p.m. was critically injured by a lightning strike, according to Tammy Malphurs, director of Volusia County Beach Safety Ocean Rescue. A bystander and lifeguards immediately started life-saving measures, but the victim was unresponsive when taken from the scene to a local hospital, authorities said. Later that afternoon, about eight miles inland, two men on the Venetian Bay golf course were jolted when lightning struck nearby, but neither of them were taken to the hospital, according to WESH 2, a local television station The lightning injuries occur just as the 25th annual National Lightning Safety Awareness Week kicks off on June 22. 'It's a good time to remember the dangers that exist,' said John Jensenius, lightning specialist with the National Lightning Safety Council. 'We are about to enter the peak of the lightning season across the U.S.,' Jensenius said. 'With the increased lightning activity and the increase in people enjoying outdoor activities, we typically see an increase in lightning fatalities from late June through August." On June 8, Spencer Loalbo, a 41-year-old father of three and his father were golfing in Gunter, Texas when they were hit by a single bolt from a single storm cloud, authorities said, according to NBC 5 in Dallas. Loalbo was killed in the "blink of an eye" stated a Go Fund Me fundraiser set up for his wife and daughters. His father was critically injured and taken to a hospital. Spencer Loalbo's death was the third lightning fatality in the U.S. this year. The leading cause of lightning deaths is fishing, and it's already responsible for two lightning deaths this year, USA TODAY previously reported. Lightning strikes on golf courses are tied with yard work for 11th place on the list of activities responsible for the most lightning deaths, Jensenius said. Forty-two lightning deaths have been reported in Texas since 2006, second only to Florida, where 93 deaths have been attributed to lightning over the same time span. Several hundred people are injured by lightning each year. Most survive, but many have lifelong neurological symptoms. If you're going to be outside, it's important to remain alert for changing weather conditions, according to the Safety Council and National Weather Service. Plan in advance where you would seek shelter, and if you hear thunder, go indoors. How do people get struck by lightning? In one of four ways: Where can you shelter if caught outside? Learn more about lightning: Contributing: Patricio G. Balona and Sheldon Gardner, Daytona Beach News-Journal, USA TODAY Network, and Doyle Rice, USA TODAY.
Daily Mail
2 days ago
- Climate
- Daily Mail
Handsome Texan dad-of-three killed in horrific freak accident while enjoying game of golf with his father
A father-of-three has died after being struck by a bolt of lightning in a 'freak accident' on the golf course. Spencer Loalbo, 41, was golfing with his father Robert at The Bridges Golf Club in Gunter, Texas, about 60 miles north of Dallas, on June 8 when tragedy struck. The pair were among the 150 people participating in the Member-Guest Tournament that Sunday afternoon, hours before severe storms were expected to roll through. But as the pair were at the 12th hole, a single bolt of lightning stuck 'out of nowhere', killing Spencer instantly, KXII reports. A local firefighter playing holes right behind them rushed into action and began to render aid, but nothing could be done to save Spencer and he was pronounced dead at a local hospital. Robert was struck as well, but to a lesser degree, and rushed to a nearby hospital in critical condition for treatment. Spencer never got a chance to say goodbye to his wife Kaylee or their three young daughters, Evelynn, 8, Charlotte, 6, and three-year-old Nora. He is remembered for his generosity and dedication to his faith, with Kaylee sharing how her husband would often feed the homeless, offer rides to strangers without transportation and donate to those in need. Spencer and Robert were struck by lightning around 5:15pm on June 8 during 'perfect' weather conditions, when skies were blue and the radar was clear. But a single storm cloud had moved ahead of the severe weather system that hit four hours later and was over the pair as they played the 12th hole. Witnesses said the tragedy happened 'so fast' called the strike an unexplainable 'act of God'. A man who was golfing 150 yards away from Robert and Spencer, claims he and his wife felt the static charge from the bolt and were left with lingering 'tingling sensations' in the days that followed. Spencer loved serving others and would always put his family and friends above himself, his family said on a GoFundMe page. He was a 'devoted follower of Jesus' and a 'selfless giver', which his wife says was a reflection of his Christian faith. Storms were rolling through the area at the time, but the thunderbolt that killed Loalbo came from the blue, eyewitnesses including his father said 'I think that was his way of showing others who Jesus is, and it just came so natural to him,' Kaylee told KVUE. The family, in his obituary, recalled how once during a homeless outreach, Spencer met a woman in a wheelchair. It was cold and she had wet socks. Spencer took off his own socks and shoes, placed them on her feet, and returned to his own car with bare feet and in tears. Kaylee says she hopes by sharing Spencer's story others will be 'encouraged to be more like my husband'.
