One Dead, Three Hospitalized After Lightning Strikes Swimmers at Fort Myers Beach
Alexis Thornton
2 hours agoA lightning strike on a crowded Florida beach killed one man and sent three others to the hospital Friday afternoon, just as Fourth of July weekend was getting underway.
The Fort Myers Beach Fire Control District responded around 3 pm to the 6600 block of Estero Boulevard after receiving reports of a lightning strike involving multiple people in the water. The four victims had been swimming in the Gulf of Mexico when the bolt hit.
Upon arrival, crews found one man unresponsive. Bystanders, including Katie Abdalla, a paramedic from Maryland who happened to be vacationing at the beach, had already deployed an AED and were performing CPR. Despite those efforts, the man was pronounced dead at the scene.
The victim was later identified as 51-year-old Viktar Kiryk. Abdalla described a significant burn mark running from his shoulder down his chest, consistent with a direct lightning strike. Three others were transported to nearby hospitals with various injuries; their conditions have not been released.