ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. — Lightning made a big mess across central Florida Friday. It sent one man to the hospital and totaled another man’s car.
“I was in shock,” said Lukas Sepuoveda. He was already having a bad day when he walked outside at the Wimbledon Park Condos in Orlando and saw his Toyota Corolla crushed like a can.
“It was upsetting. It is what it is. Nature,” Sepuoveda said.
Beachgoer Katherine Skinner said, “Everybody was running to their cars. Even the people working here ran to their cars.”
Over on New Smyrna Beach, rescuers say a tourist from Colorado was struck by lightning.
“This was an unfortunate freak accident,” said Beach Safety director Tammy Malphurs. “A 29-year-old man was in ankle-deep water when he was struck by lightning.”
Malphurs said the skies were blue, and the storm was unexpected.
According to police, two golfers had a close call at the Venetian Bay golf course but are OK. Police said they had reports that that people were indirectly hit.
“It was very intense thunder and lightning was happening everywhere,” Skinner said.
Back in Orlando, crews cleaned up the mess. Lightning damaged several other cars, as well as a fence and a tree.
“It was the first time I heard the lightning so close. It was like boom,” Sepuoveda said.
Rescuers say if you hear thunder, go inside immediately to be safe.
Click here to download our free news, weather and smart TV apps. And click here to stream Channel 9 Eyewitness News live.
©2025 Cox Media Group
