Employee struck by lightning at Beaumont middle school

BEAUMONT — A security guard with an umbrella and a second school employee were apparently struck by lightning at a Beaumont middle school as a storm system moved through the San Gorgonio pass area Wednesday afternoon, May 22.

The security guard was rushed to an area hospital, while the second victim declined further medical treatment after the lightning strike, which happened just as classes were being dismissed for the day. No students were directly affected by the strike, according to school and fire officials.

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Cal Fire/Riverside County Fire Department along with other emergency personnel were dispatched to Mountain View Middle School on Cougar Way around 1:45 p.m., after receiving reports of two people possibly struck by lightning, Cal Fire spokesperson Rob Roseen later reported.

“Upon arrival firefighters evaluated two patients,” Roseen explained. “One patient was transported to a local hospital, by ground ambulance, in stable condition. The second patient was evaluated by paramedics on scene and declined further medical treatment.”

“The employee was conscious and taken to an area hospital to be treated,” School district spokesperson Francinni Zabata later confirmed to media requests for further information and details.

The security guard was later listed as being in “fair” condition, according to Loma Linda University Medical Center Public Relations Manager Briana Pastorino.

Yesterday’s storm system dumped heavy rain and hail and brought lightning and thunder, while flooding many area roads throughout the Inland Empire.

Contact the writer: [email protected]

Trevor Montgomery, 47, moved last year 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 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.

Trevor’s assignments included Corrections, Patrol, DUI Enforcement, Boat and Personal Water-Craft based Lake Patrol, Off-Road Vehicle Enforcement, Problem Oriented Policing Team, and Personnel/Background Investigations. He finished his career while working as a Sex Crimes and Child Abuse Investigator and was a court-designated expert in child abuse and child sex-related crimes.

Trevor has been married for more than 28 years and was a foster parent to more than 60 children over 13 years. He is now an adoptive parent and his “fluid family” includes 13 children and 15 – but soon to be 16 – grandchildren.

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