A family of three was struck by lightning while under an umbrella at a beach in Florida’s Pinellas County, officials said Friday.
St. Pete Beach Fire Rescue was dispatched to the scene at 12:19 p.m., Deputy Fire Chief Adam Poirrer said. Multiple units from the fire rescue team and Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office responded and rendered emergency aid, Porrier said.
Two adult victims were treated on-scene and refused further treatment. A 17-year-old girl was taken to Tampa General Hospital. There was no immediate update available on her condition.
CBS affiliate WTSP reported that the family had been standing under their umbrella during a thunderstorm. Jennifer Tillman said she saw the whole thing from her apartment overlooking the beach.
“You could hear it, it was coming closer and closer and closer, and then it happened,” Tillman told WTSP. “I don’t know, I don’t know. It was just one of those things, I don’t know, that you can never – you can’t unsee.”
Tillman said that a Good Samaritan picked up the girl after the lightning strike. She said the other two people appeared to be in shock after the strike.
Images from the scene showed the family’s umbrella singed and snapped in half, with other belongings damaged by the lightning strike. Dead gulls were also visible in the area.
The safest place to be during a lightning storm is inside, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The agency recommends against carrying any metal objects, including umbrellas. Metal can conduct electricity, and a person is more likely to be struck by lightning if carrying a conductor above shoulder height.
“If you are out on the beach or anywhere with an umbrella that is taller than you, you are literally creating a lightning rod,” WTSP meteorologist Bobby Deskins said.
Tillman said that just hours after the incident, the storm had cleared out and new beachgoers had come to celebrate the 4th of July with fireworks.
“A whole new wave of people came,” Tillman said. “Like nothing had ever happened.”
St. Pete Beach is a small city on a barrier island in Pinellas County, about 20 miles southwest of Tampa.
Kerry Breen is a news editor at CBSNews.com. A graduate of New York University’s Arthur L. Carter School of Journalism, she previously worked at NBC News’ TODAY Digital. She covers current events, breaking news and issues including substance use.
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