Officials warning of lighting danger after AZ teens struck by lightning

EL MIRAGE, Ariz. — Two teens are reportedly in stable condition after they were struck by lightning during a monsoon in El Mirage Wednesday night.

The two boys, reported to be 13 or 14-years-old, were struck by lightning at a park as a large storm rolled through town, El Mirage Police Department said yesterday.

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The teens were at a park near 121st Avenue and Moreno Boulevard when they were both struck, El Mirage Fire and Police officials have said.

According to witnesses, the boys were running for cover at a nearby Ramada when they were both struck. El Mirage Fire Department and other emergency personnel responded to the scene after they were notified about the lightning strike.

Witnesses and good Samaritans raced to the aid of the teens and reportedly started CPR before first responders arrived at the scene and took over life-saving efforts. Paramedics eventually rushed the boys to an area hospital, according to officials.

It was initially reported that one of the two boys was in cardiac arrest and not likely to survive and the other boy had injuries to his extremities, but officials later updated that both boys were in stable condition at Phoenix Children’s Hospital.

According to AccuWeather.com Senior Meteorologist Kristina Pydynowski, when a thunderstorm is approaching, it is important to seek shelter as soon as possible to stay safe.

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“A sturdy and enclosed building or a car is the safest place to be during a thunderstorm,” Pydynowski explained. But keep in mind that if you are in a car during a thunderstorm, you should avoid touching metallic areas that can conduct electricity.

It is also important to remember that just because a thunderstorm appears far away does not mean that you are safe from being struck.

“A thunderstorm may not be directly overhead, but you could still get hit by lightning,” said Pydynowski. “A bolt of lightning can strike people and buildings 10 miles away from where it is raining.”

“In extremely rare cases, lightning has been detected almost 50 miles from the parent thunderstorm,” the meteorologist explained, saying that lightning that strikes this far away from a thunderstorm are sometimes refereed to as a ‘bolt from the blue.’

Visit Accuweather.com for more lightning safety tips.

 

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Trevor Montgomery, 47, recently moved to the Intermountain area of Shasta County from Riverside County and runs Riverside County News Source and Shasta County News Source. Additionally, he writes for several other news organizations, including Riverside County based newspapers, Valley News, The Valley Chronicle and Anza Valley Outlook, as well as Bonsall/Fallbrook Village News in San Diego County and The Mountain Echo in Shasta County.

Trevor spent 10 years in the U.S. Army as an Orthopedic Specialist before joining the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department in 1998. He was medically retired after losing his leg, breaking his back and suffering both spinal cord and brain injuries in an off-duty accident. (Click here to see segment of Discovery Channel documentary of Trevor’s accident.)

During his time with the sheriff’s department, Trevor worked at several different stations, including Robert Presley Detention Center, Southwest Station in Temecula, Hemet/Valle Vista Station, Ben Clark Public Safety Training Center and Lake Elsinore Station, along with other locations.