An ordinary stormy morning in Perth turned into something out of a disaster film when three people were struck by lightning in a single day — an event emergency officials are calling “incredibly rare.”
The lightning strikes occurred Thursday, Feb. 26, as a storm system swept across Western Australia’s capital. By the time the skies cleared, a 78-year-old man was seriously injured, two teenage girls were hospitalized, and a beloved family dog was dead.
Michael Day, 78, was walking his dog, Messi, in the suburb of Hamersley around 8:30 a.m. local time when lightning struck. According to News.com.au, multiple St John WA Ambulance crews responded to the scene and transported Day to the hospital with serious injuries.
Messi did not survive.
Day’s daughter, Karen, told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation that her father’s “T-shirt had been shredded” by the force of the strike. She said he remains in the hospital in a “lot of pain,” though the family is grateful his injuries were not even worse.
“Everyone is just shocked,” she said.
While paramedics were tending to Day in Hamersley, another bolt struck in Mount Helena, east of Perth, where 16-year-old Georgia Rizzi and a school friend had just walked onto their tennis court.
Rizzi told ABC that she and her friends noticed thunder rumbling as they headed toward the sports courts. Moments later, there was “a loud bang.” Lightning hit a nearby basketball hoop before the current traveled through the area.
“I remember feeling pain on my head, and my spine vibrate,” Rizzi said. “I started crying because I felt numb in my feet.”
She described the eerie sensation that preceded the strike.
“Everyone’s hair started sticking up,” she said.
Rizzi and her friend struggled to stand after the blast. Both were taken to the hospital by ambulance as a precaution, where they underwent tests including heart rate monitoring before being discharged with instructions to monitor their symptoms.
A spokeswoman for the WA Department of Education confirmed that two students in the Perth Hills reported being struck and feeling unwell. School staff responded immediately, and St John Ambulance transported the girls for further medical assessment.
For emergency responders, the triple strike in a single day was nearly unheard of.
Lightning above the Carlisle Brake & Friction plant on the south side just before 7 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 19, in Bloomington, Indiana. (Jenny Porter Tilley / IndyStar)
St John WA manager Deane Coxall told ABC he had never encountered anything like it in his career.
“I’ve been in this job almost 15 years, and I have never heard of that happening, especially here in Western Australia,” Coxall said.
“It is an incredibly unfortunate and unlikely event; I would be very surprised if we ever saw it again.”
Lightning strikes are rare but not impossible in Australia, particularly during summer storm systems. However, three separate injuries in one metropolitan area within hours stunned both officials and residents.
