Bizarre Lightning Strike Believed Responsible for Motorcyclist’s I-95 Death

By Orlando Personal Injury Attorney on June 12, 2019

Police within Volusia County believe that the death of a motorcyclist on Monday, June 10th, was caused by an errant strike of lightning. According to the reports from the Florida Highway Patrol, the incident took place around 3:00 in the afternoon, close to mile marker 271 on an Ormond Beach section of Interstate 95.

Shortly before the lightning strike, a 45-year-old resident of Charlotte, North Carolina, was driving a motorcycle that was not described in the initial report. It is not clear if storms were reported in the area or if the sudden appearance of cloud to ground lightning was unexpected. Either way, as it neared 3:00 lightning began to drop from the clouds.

An off-duty state trooper from Virginia was on the road when the incident happened, and they were reportedly close enough to the motorcycle to see the lightning strike the biker’s helmet and throw the individual from the bike. The mid-day hour when the lightning strike took place meant that the road was full of individuals beginning to navigate the beginning of Monday rush hour. Because of this, there were numerous other witnesses to the lightning strike other than the off-duty state trooper.

All of the witnesses described a similar occurrence: the lightning hit the helmet of the biker, shattered the visor, and caused the bike to veer off of the road. Some witnesses stated that the biker was violently thrown upwards of 50 feet off of the bike and onto the roadway. It is not believed that the motorcyclist was struck by any of the other vehicles traveling along the road at this time.

When paramedics and EMTs reached the scene, it was already too late. The injuries sustained by the motorcyclist as a result of the lightning strike were far too severe, and the crash that occurred following the freak accident was also violent. The man was declared dead at the scene of the accident. It is believed that the investigation is still ongoing, although the sequence of events that resulted in the death of the 45-year-old Charlotte resident is not, at this time, believed to be contested.

Sources:

• ‘Lightning hit him. He went flying off his bike,’ 911 caller says

James O. Cunningham

Since 1977, personal injury lawyer James Cunningham has provided effective legal advocacy to people who are injured through the negligent actions of another person or entity throughout the Central Florida area. He fights to obtain recoveries for his clients’ physical and emotional pain and suffering and pursues his clients’ personal injury cases with a commitment to excellence and impeccable preparation.