Community members and family mourn a 16-year-old who was apparently struck and killed by lightning. (WSVN)
PEMBROKE PINES, Fla. – A Florida teen was apparently struck and killed by lightning Wednesday afternoon.
Pembroke Pines Fire and Rescue said they found the teen unconscious, in cardiac arrest, on the grass near 650 SW 67th Avenue. He was taken to a nearby hospital with what fire officials said appeared to be burn wounds on his chest and inner thighs, consistent with a lightning strike.
The victim’s family released a statement identifying him as 16-year-old Cameron Day.
Day was a junior at McArthur High School in Hollywood. A witness told WSVN that she saw Day biking right before a flash of lightning.
Radar showed that there were 32 lightning strikes in the area within the hour that emergency workers responded to the scene.
(FOX Weather)
Florida leads nation in lightning deaths since 2006
There has been no official confirmation of lightning as the cause of Day’s death. If confirmed, this would be the 11th lightning death of 2024 and the fifth of the year in Florida, according to the National Lightning Safety Council (NLSC).
According to the NLSC, Florida leads the nation in lightning fatalities, with 93 since 2006.
During the same period, there have been 6 people across the U.S. were killed by lightning while riding a bike.
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