(Photo: JOHN J. JANKOWSKI JR./SPECIAL TO THE NEWS JOURNAL)
Lightning strike causes $20K in damages to Middletown house
Karen Okamoto and Jerry Smith, The News Journal 6:16 p.m. EDT August 22, 2016
Lightning strike damages Middletown home
The Delaware State Fire Marshal’s Office confirmed that a fire that heavily damaged a Middletown home in the Springmill community shortly before 4 p.m. on Sunday was caused by a lightning strike.
Lightning struck and heavily damaged a Middletown house Sunday afternoon, said Frank Bailey, fire chief of the Volunteer Hose Company of Middletown.
An owner of the home in the 500 block of Whispering Trail in the Springmill development was home at the time but was not hurt, he said. A neighbor was able to get the owner out after seeing smoke coming from the home, the chief said.
The fire caused approximately $20,000 in damage to the residence, according to the fire marshal’s office.
Upon arrival, Bailey said that smoke could be seen coming from the residence.
One neighbor said he was working in his home office at the time of the strike, which he described as “very loud.”
“It scared me,” said Robert Koncir, a neighbor of the women whose house was struck and damaged. “It sounded like it was right in the area. I was working on my computer and I actually felt it through my fingertips.”
The fire company was dispatched at 3:52 p.m. and brought the lightning-sparked fire under control in about 40 minutes, Bailey said.
Paul and Joan Lloyd own the home, according to New Castle County property records.
The homeowner is staying with friends or family, Bailey said.
Lightning struck a home on Whispering Trail in the Springmill development in Middletown on Sunday, Aug. 21, 2016. (Photo: JOHN J. JANKOWSKI JR./SPECIAL TO THE NEWS JOURNAL)