BELTON, Texas (KXXV) — “I thought it was a bomb or a big explosion. It was like the loudest thing I ever heard; I thought something exploded over my house,” Loreanette Baker, a neighbor, said.
- The home located in Three Creeks was struck 6 times by lightning.
- No other structures were damaged.
- Bell County is still under a burn ban.
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
“I thought it was a bomb or a big explosion, but it was the loudest thing I ever heard. I thought something exploded over my house,” Loreanette Baker, a neighbor, said.
But it wasn’t a bomb that went off.
It was a lightning strike, and— it wasn't even the first time the house was hit by lightning last week. The Bell County Fire Marshal's Office says it was shot six times.
“They were looking at their house right here trying to see where the damage was, and then you can’t see a fire if you look at it, you can’t see a fire up there where it hit," Baker said. "And so they are trying to find it."
The fire marshal's office says the family could get out safely, as fire officials were on the scene within three minutes.
“And the fire trucks and all that everybody is coming in and so it was about 4:55 a.m. they are still out there looking at their house and then by 5:01 a.m. there is still nothing after being hit at 4:40 a.m., and then there it is all of the stuff,“ Baker said.
Firefighters controlled the flames within 30 minutes— no other structures were damaged. The cause of the fire remains under investigation, but for now, it's being listed as natural causes.
“As neighbors, you know we are very thankful because two or three streets over there were a fire, and another house caught fire because of the wind, so we are grateful on this street for sure,“ Baker said.
I contacted the homeowners to see how they were doing and received no response. The home did suffer fire and water damage, but it can be repaired.
According to the National Weather Service, lightning can be placed on your roof rods to help protect a structure from a direct lightning strike.
Still, a complete lightning protection system is needed to help prevent electrical surges and possible fires caused by lightning entering a structure via wires and pipes.
As of today, Bell County is still under a burn ban.
The Bell County Fire Marshal's Officesays it will update its Facebook page once the ban has been lifted. If caught burning under these conditions, you can face a class 2 misdemeanor.
